Together Forever
by SarahandBabees
Summary: What if, in Shadow Kiss, Dimitri was never turned? What if Rose saved him? Together, they'll have to face hard times and seemingly impassable obstacles. Will their love be enough to keep them together, or will they be torn apart by the cruel hand of fate?
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: This is my new story! I really hope you guys like it :) Ugh. High School tomorrow :'( Please tell me what you think of this, and if you want me to do Dimitri's POV for the next chapter.**

**Disclaimer: The characters of VA belong to Richelle Mead. Although I wish Dimitri was mine :)**

-Sarah

**CHAPTER ONE**

My entire world was turned upside-down.

Dimitri, **my **Dimitri, was in terrible danger.

As soon as I saw that Strigoi grab and bite him, I started to run back to the caves. However, I was stopped by someone who wrapped their arms around me.

"Hathaway! What do you think you're doing?" Stan barked. I ignored his words, instead swinging my leg back. I heard him grunt when I hit the golden spot. His grip loosened, and I began to run again. Arms were flying out at me, trying to grab me, but I was fast and I dodged them.

As I ran, all I could think was _please let me be fast enough, please don't let him be dead! _When I made it back to the caves, I was greeted by five Strigoi. I snarled viciously at them.

"Ooooh! Feisty." I heard one say. One of them lunged at me, but I was fast and my hand that was clutching my stake snaked out faster than I thought possible. When it pierced it's heart, it let out a little gurgle and dropped to the ground. I kept on fighting until only one remained. The blond Strigoi.

He was hovering over Dimitri, who wasn't moving, save for the small movement of his chest. He had puncture marks in his neck. I felt like throwing up at the sight of him, mangled and broken. The blond Strigoi was smirking at me, and that pushed me over the edge. I lunged, but he anticipated my attack. He threw me against the wall, but I pushed the pain away and attacked again. I kicked him in the stomach then punched him in the head. He backed up a little, but straightened back up. _God, _I thought, _he's gonna be a bitch to kill. _

"Is that all you've got? I thought you were supposed to be the best!" he said, then snorted.

My blood boiled. "You're gonna be really sorry you said that." I replied through clenched teeth. I heard someone in the distance.

"WE ARE **NOT **LEAVING HER HERE! SHE IS MY ONLY DAUGHTER AND I WILL NOT LOSE HER!" my mother shrieked. That distracted me, and blondie threw me into the wall again. _SNAP! _I was not getting back up this time. That bastard broke my back!

"ROSE! NO!" Mom yelled. Blondie must've run, because there were three Guardians that came to get me. Mom tried to get me into a sitting position, but stopped when she heard my shriek of agony.

"GODDAMMIT! OUCH! SHIT!" I screamed.

"What Rose?" Mom asked from beside me.

"MY FUCKING BACK IS BROKEN AND IT FUCKING HURTS EVERYTIME I MOVE! SHIT!" I screeched. Alberta must've heard my screaming because she and another Guardian came over with a stretcher.

"Rose, I'm not going to lie, this is gonna hurt. A lot. What I need you to do for me is take a really deep breath and hold it. Can you do that?" Alberta asked.

"Yes." I replied in a determined voice. They lifted me onto the stretchers, and while I was barely able to hold back the screams, I couldn't keep the tears from flowing down my cheeks. A small whimper escaped my lips, and I was trying not to pass out. I had to make sure of something first.

"Mom," I whimpered, " is Dimitri gonna be okay?"

"Yes, sweetie. He will make it through this, just like you have to." she replied, a few tears sliding down her face.

"Okay." was all I managed to say before unconsiousness swallowed me up.

**Review :D**


	2. Chapter 2

**Heeeeeeey :) I had an awesome first day of high school! I managed to walk to Starbucks and back without getting rookied :D I'm in the same class as my best friend... so an overall good day! I've decided not to do Dimitri's POV... if you guys want a chapter in his POV in the future, request it in a review :) On with chapter 2... I hope you guys enjoy it!**

**Disclaimer: Even though I wish I did, I sadly do not own VA. It all belongs to Richelle Mead... Lucky girl :( I might have to take Dimitri :)**

-Sarah

**CHAPTER TWO**

Blackness. All I could see or feel. Everywhere.

I heard voices, but I couldn't make out specific words. My entire being was engulfed in a thick veil of darkness.

Eventually, sounds started to mean something. I could distinguish voices.

"Oh God . . . why won't she wake up? I healed her!" Lissa cried.

"I honestly don't know, Liss. Just try to calm down and give her some time. She **will **wake up." Christian responded. _Good job, Pyro! _I thought. Christian will help her calm down. I heard quiet sobs from beside me, and felt her anguish and sadness through the bond. I wanted to just wrap my arms around her and tell her _it's gonna be okay._ But I couldn't. I couldn't move a single muscle. It was like I was caged in a dark corner of my mind, unable to reach the controls.

Someone grasped my hand. I didn't need to see the person to know who it was; the electricity that crackled between us was enough of a tip-off. It was Dimitri. My heart swelled with relief. _He's okay! _If I could move, I'd be happy-dancing!

"Roza . . . please wake up. I need you! I can't go on without you." he said in an agonized whisper. Hearing him in so much pain broke my heart. I wanted nothing more than to wrap my arms around him and kiss the pain away. I'd even settle for a simple squeeze of the hand, just to let him know I'm here and I'll never leave him. I tried so hard to move, but I just couldn't.

I felt a drop of water on my hand, and I realized that it was a tear. Dimitri was crying. I tried again to move my hand, but nothing happened. I was exhausted from trying to move, so I fell into an uncomfortable sleep.

I dreamt I was in my Academy room, and I was wearing my favorite purple flannel pyjama bottoms with an Academy t-shirt.

"Little dhampir!" I heard from behind me. It was Adrian! I should've realized it was an Adrian-induced dream.

"Adrian!" I yelled, running over to hug him.

"You have no idea how relieved I am to see you!" he told me.

"Adrian, I don't know what to do! I feel like I'm caged in my mind. I can hear what's going on around me, but I can't move!" I replied.

"You have to fight, Rose. Everyone is falling apart without you. Especially Belikov . . ." he said.

"I know. I tried to squeeze his hand to let him know I was there, but it just completely exhausted me. I can't do anything at all! I hate being helpless." I responded, quite frustrated.

"Just keep fighting. I'm gonna go now, any messages?" he asked.

"Yes. I want you to tell Lissa not to worry, tell Christian to keep Lissa sane, and tell Dimitri I'm here and I love him." I replied. He nodded. "Oh and Adrian, be strong." I added.

"I will, little dhampir." having said that, he turned and ended the dream. Instead of remaining asleep, I woke up so I could hear Adrian repeat my messages.

"Do you think Adrian was able to reach her this time?" Lissa asked.

"I don't know. I hope so." Christian replied.

"I guess we'll have to wait and see." Dimitri said. It was silent for a few minutes, until I heard the door swing open.

"Adrian! Did you get her this time?" Lissa asked.

"Yes I did!" he replied. Lissa squealed.

"What did she say?" Christian asked.

"She said she feels like she's caged in her mind. She can hear everything going on around her, but she can't move at all. She said she tried to squeeze Dimitri's hand to let him know she's in there, but it exhausted her. She has messages for each of you. I bet she's listening right now, so I have to repeat exactly what she said . . ." Adrian replied.

"What did she say?" Dimitri asked.

"The first message is for Lissa. She said don't worry. The next is for Christian. She said keep Lissa sane. The last message is for Dimitri. She said she's here and . . . she loves you." Adrian replied.

"Oh Rose . . . I love you too." Dimitri replied. Then he pressed a kiss to my lips.

"How can I not worry? You know me waaaaay better than that." Lissa replied.

"I will keep her sane. Just focus on waking up, Rosie." Christian replied. He's gonna pay for calling me Rosie when I wake up! Dimitri climbed into the bed with me and wrapped his arms around me. As I was falling asleep, I heard him say, "Я люблю Вас очень, мой Roza. Пожалуйста пробудитесь скоро, потому что без Вас моя жизнь холодна. Возвратитесь ко мне, как только Вы можете." I didn't understand a word of it, but it comforted me. I slept peacefully.

**Okay, for the next chapter I can either make her wake up or do Dimitri's POV of this chapter. Tell me which one you would prefer :) I'll update again when I get five more reviews. I'm at five right now so I wanna get to ten :)**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: WOW! Ten reviews in less than two hours! You guys are soooo awesome! As a special treat, even though I have school tomorrow morning, I am going to write this for you guys now :) I love you guys and thanks for your support so far :D OMG, random song that I think represents Rose and Dimitri: Hero by Enrique Iglesias! I luv that song soo much and I'm listening to it as I write. Anyways, I hope I can continue to make you guys happy with the story!**

**Disclaimer: You've heard it all before... do I really have to repeat myself?**

-Sarah

**CHAPTER THREE**

**Dimitri POV**

Oh god . . . my poor Roza. She was in a coma because of me. I owe her my life, because if she hadn't intervened, I would be dead. I just wish she was awake so I could express my love for her.

"Oh God . . . why won't she wake up? I healed her!" Lissa cried.

"I honestly don't know, Liss. Just try to calm down and give her some time. She **will **wake up." Christian responded. He was so optimistic . . . I hope he's right.

We all just sat and stared at her beautiful sleeping face; she was the true sleeping beauty. I couldn't hold back any longer. I walked over and sat with her, taking her hand. I felt the familiar electric current that sparked everytime we touched. At least I knew she was still in there somewhere.

"Roza . . . please wake up. I need you! I can't go on without you." I said. Lissa and Christian looked at me with sadness in their eyes. Rose was like Lissa's sister. Christian, although the two of them bantered constantly, was like Rose's brother. They were suffering too. I wish that she would just magically wake up . . . I couldn't help the tear that slid down my cheek and landed on Rose's hand.

Just then, Adrian Ivashkov walked through the door of Rose's hospital room. I realized that he too was suffering. It bothered me, but he loved her too. It was nowhere near as much as I loved her, but still love.

"Hey, Adrian." Lissa greeted him.

"Hey cousin." he replied. "Any changes?" he asked, obviously referring to Rose.

"No, not yet. Could you try reaching her again?" Lissa asked.

"Okay. I'm going back to my room, I come back when I'm done." he replied. We all nodded.

I looked back at Roza, studying her. She had the most beautiful dark brown hair that felt like silk when you ran your fingers through it and smelled ironically like roses. Her full, luscious lips that were always soft, warm and gentle when she kissed. If her eyes were open, they would reveal big, beautiful dark brown eyes. They were like a window to her soul, and it was pure and good. Her lovely tanned skin, the same color as the inside of an almond. Her beautiful, curvy figure that was currently disguised by hospital blankets. She had an IV in her hand, and I chuckled internally. She hated needles, so she would probably be pretty mad when she woke up and saw one stuck in her hand. God I hope she wakes up . . . I wonder if Ivashkov was able to reach her this time. He's been trying to for the past week that she's been in a coma . . . I really shouldn't get my hopes up.

"Do you think Adrian was able to reach her this time?" Lissa asked.

"I don't know. I hope so." Christian replied.

"I guess we'll have to wait and see." I said, even though I didn't want to wait anymore. I was tired of waiting; I just wanted to know if Roza was okay. It was silent for a few minutes, until the door swung open, Adrian walking in with a huge grin plastered on his face.

"Adrian! Did you get her this time?" Lissa asked.

"Yes I did!" he replied. Lissa squealed.

"What did she say?" Christian asked.

"She said she feels like she's caged in her mind. She can hear everything going on around her, but she can't move at all. She said she tried to squeeze Dimitri's hand to let him know she's in there, but it exhausted her. She has messages for each of you. I bet she's listening right now, so I have to repeat exactly what she said . . ." Adrian replied. Yeah, if he didn't, I bet Rose would give him a piece of her mind . . . or fist . . .

"What did she say?" I asked.

"The first message is for Lissa. She said don't worry. The next is for Christian. She said keep Lissa sane. The last message is for Dimitri. She said she's here and . . . she loves you." Adrian replied. I felt my lips pull up into a smile in that moment.

"Oh Rose . . . I love you too." I said to her. Then I thought of something. If she truly was like Sleeping Beauty, then a kiss from her true love will wake her up! God, I sound stupid, but I have to try. I leaned down and pressed my lips to hers, waiting for some kind of response. There was none.

"How can I not worry? You know me waaaaay better than that." Lissa replied.

"I will keep her sane. Just focus on waking up, Rosie." Christian replied. She's gonna kill him when she wakes up . . .

I crawled into the narrow hospital bed, carefully avoiding the wires attached to her, and wrapped my arms around her.

"Я люблю Вас очень, мой Roza. Пожалуйста пробудитесь скоро, потому что без Вас моя жизнь холодна. Возвратитесь ко мне, как только Вы можете." I said. I knew she wouldn't understand, but I knew it always comforted her when I spoke to her in Russian.

It seemed like I laid with her forever, just staring at her face. I was praying for the moment that she'd wake up. I wanted to be the first thing she'd see. Lissa and Christian had gone back to their dorm rooms for the night, but I wouldn't budge. I was going to stay here until I saw here eyes open, and heard her beautiful voice that would put a chorus of angels to shame. I would hold her hand, stroke her face or just hold her close. I spoke sometimes too, saying things like "I love you" or "Please wake up" and "I need you". Stuff along those lines.

"Roza, please." my voice sounded tired and defeated. "I need you to wake up. I miss you. A lot." my voice broke at the end, and I began to sob and cry. I looked away from her face, staring at the wall. It was then that I heard a small noise.

"Dimitri?" she whispered. My eyes snapped back to her face, and those beautiful brown eyes were staring up at me.

**Rose POV**

Quiet breathing. The only sound in the room. There was no talking, just breathing coming from beside me. I woke up a few times in the past few hours, hearing Dimitri talking quietly to me. The pain in his voice was unbearable, and I just wanted to wake up. I started to fight against the cage so I could get back to the controls. I wanted to see his beautiful face again, gaze into his bottomless chocolate brown eyes, kiss his warm and fierce lips and run my fingers through his hair. I pulled up images of him, because he made me stronger. They fueled my determination, urging me to fight. I needed one little push.

"Roza, please. I need you to wake up. I miss you. A lot." his voice broke at the end, and I felt warm tears that spilled onto me and heard quiet sobs. That was the final push I needed; I broke free, finally in control again.

I opened my eyes, seeing Dimitri staring at the wall.

"Dimitri?" I whispered. I was weak, and a whisper was all I could manage. His eyes snapped down to me and bore into mine.

"Oh Roza! I can't believe it! I missed you so much and it's such a relief to see you awake!" he replied, tears of agony now tears of joy.

"I missed you too, Comrade." I said, louder than I spoke before. My voice sounded raspy and stupid, because I was really thirsty. As if sensing my thirst, he reached over and grabbed a glass of water. He held it to my dry, cracked lips and I took a huge gulp. When I drank the while glass, he spoke.

"Is that better?" he asked.

"Much." I replied, my voice sounding better. "Thank you for staying with me. You're the only thing that could wake me up. I thought of you and broke free." I admitted.

"You're welcome, Roza. I would've stayed even if you didn't want me to." he replied with a chuckle. I reached my hand up, running it along his cheek. The electricity crackled and buzzed between us, and he bent his face down and kissed me gently, as if I was a piece of glass; he thought I was fragile and was afraid of hurting me. I pulled him closer to me, and the intensity of our kissing increased. Then he broke away, both of us panting.

"That was . . . wow." I said.

"I agree . . . I'll be right back. I have to go get the nurse and call Lissa." he said.

"Okay . . . hurry back." I replied. He chuckled and left the room. Through the bond, I could feel that Lissa was asleep. I know she won't be angry for being woken up though, she'll be ecstatic. I felt it the moment she woke up. The feelings coming through the bond were excited, and so intense that I was sucked into her head. She was dialing Christian's number.

"Hello?" a sleepy Christian said.

"Christian! Rose is awake! Come on and get ready. I'll meet you at the clinic." she replied.

"I'll be right there!" he responded, and the line went dead. I pulled out of Lissa's head to see Dimitri and a nurse had come into my room.

"Well hello Rose." the nurse said with a smile.

"Hello." I replied.

"I see you're much better." she commented.

"Yes. A lot better." I replied. "When can I leave?" I asked.

"We're going to keep you for the night, but you're free to go tomorrow morning." she replied. I nodded and she left the room. Then Lissa burst through the door.

"OMG Rose! I'm sooooo happy to see you! You scared all of us!" she said to me.

"I'm happy to see you too!" I replied. Then Christian sauntered through the door.

"Hey Pyro!" I said with a grin.

"Hey Rosie!" he replied. I gave him a really dirty look, and he shrunk back. I just laughed at him. Dimitri walked over and sat with me, taking my hand in his.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Lissa asked. I knew she was talking about Dimitri and I.

I sighed. "It's a long story, one I'm too tired to explain now." I replied.

"Later." she said in a tone that said it was not up for discussion. She nodded.

"I'm tired. Can I go back to bed now?" Christian asked.

"Yeah, go. You too Liss. Get some sleep." I replied.

"Fine." she replied, and they left hand in hand.

"So, tell me everything I missed." I said to Dimitri.

**Wow... crazy long chapter! I hope you guys like it :) Review :D**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Thank you for all the reviews I've gotten since last night :) I really like hearing what you guys think.**

**Anyways, I hope you guys like this chapter :)**

**Disclaimer: I own everything. I just traded a magic bean to Richelle Mead for her characters! Haha, jkjkjk... I totally wish that was true, but in real life, I own nothing, it all belongs to Richelle Mead.**

-Enjoy! Sarah

**CHAPTER FOUR**

"What would you like to know?" Dimitri asked me.

"What happened after the caves?"

"Well, I guess I was in really bad shape. I had five broken ribs, a broken arm and I had lost a lot of blood." he grimaced at the thought of it.

"Then I'm guessing Lissa healed you?" I asked.

"Yes, but not until after she healed your back." he replied. I winced as I remembered the fiery pain in my back. Dimitri didn't know that though.

"What's wrong? Are you in pain?" he asked frantically.

"No," I sighed, "I was thinking of how much my back hurt when it was broken. Then they had to lift me onto the stretcher and it was just unbearable. I passed out after I asked about you."

He sighed with relief at the fact that I wasn't in pain. Then he turned serious. "Roza, I owe you my life. When you were in a coma and wouldn't wake up, I thought I'd never get a chance to thank you. I'd be dead -or worse- now if you wouldn't have run back to me. The whole time you were in a coma, I kept thinking over and over how it would be my fault if you never woke up again. The pain of thinking I'd lost you was excruciating! I love you so much, more than I can even begin to explain."

I was lost for words. I never even thought of the fact that Dimitri would've felt so guilty about this. I knew I would've felt the same if our situations had been reversed. Unable to speak, I reached up and stroked his face. I was crying tears of joy for being alive and anguish for the pain I'd inflicted on Dimitri. He leaned down and pressed his lips to mine, molding them together. After a few moments, he broke away with a chuckle.

"What?" I asked.

"Well . . . when you were in a coma, I was thinking of you like Sleeping Beauty, so I kissed you hoping you'd wake up." he replied, looking embarrassed.

I was flattered that he compared mme to Sleeping Beauty. "I remember that kiss; I was semi-conscious. I wanted so badly to kiss you back . . ."

"How long we're you semi-conscious?" he asked.

"Since yesterday, I think. So tell me more of what I missed."

"Well, Lissa was a complete wreck, Christian even cried a few times. Adrian was usually drunk, Eddie visited a few times, and Mia even flew over from the Court. She's still here, so you can see her tomorrow. I haven't left your side since I was able to come in here five days ago. Lissa has been bringing me clothes to change into. Everyone would talk to you, tell you how their day was, stuff like that." Wow, I can't believe Christian cried and Mia flew here just for me! "They got more guardians sent here, since we lost a lot . . ." he trailed off.

After a few minutes, I spoke. "Well, I'm just glad I got to see you again. You're the most significant thing in my world, and the only thing that could pull me through. I hope you know just how much you mean to me." I yawned. I was still exhausted.

"I know, Roza. You're tired, sleep. I'll be right here." he said. That reminded me of something.

"Dimitri? What did you say to me last night?" I asked.

"Oh, I said 'I love you very much, my Roza. Please wake up soon, because without you my life is bleak. Come back to me as soon as you can.'" he replied.

"Love you." I murmured.

"I love you too." he replied. I once again fell asleep wrapped in his arms.

The next morning when I woke up, I felt refreshed. I looked over to see Dimitri still sleeping at my side. I smiled; he looked so peaceful. I pulled off the covers, got up and stretched. My muscles were stiff from being in one positions for so long. I went to the little bathroom that was in my room at the clinic and looked in the mirror. Ugh, I looked like something that lived in a swamp. Dark purple circles were under my eyes, my hair was greasy and knotted, and I looked pale. I turned away from the mirror, vowing silently to get in the shower when I got back to my room.

I climbed back into the hospital bed with Dimitri, trying not to jostle the mattress. It didn't work, however, and his chocolate brown eyes fluttered open.

"Roza?" he mumbled sleepily.

"Good morning sunshine." I responded.

"How are you today?" he asked.

"Much better, thanks. I just wanna get out of here and take a nice long shower." I replied truthfully.

"I'll go get Dr. Olendski and see if you can go home now." he said.

"Okay." he got up and walked out of the room. After I get a shower, I'm gonna go see all of my friends. They needed to see that I was fine, and they didn't need to worry anymore. I needed to thank all of them for visiting me.

A few moments later, Dimitri returned with Dr. Olendski.

"Hey Doc." I said with a grin.

"Hello Rose. I'm glad to see you awake." she replied.

"I'm glad to be awake. I felt like I was trapped in a dark corner of my mind, far away from the controls. It was torchure to hear eveything and be able to do nothing." I explained.

"Well the main thing is you're awake and you're healthy. You're free to go." she said, smiling at me.

I jumped up and hugged her. "Thank you." I responded.

"No problem, Rose. I don't want to see you back here anytime soon." she warned.

"I'll do my best." I replied. I put on some clothes that Lissa had brought a few days ago, and left the clinic hand-in-hand with Dimitri.

I was glad that we were so open with our relationship now. It felt nice. Natural.

"So who knows about us?" I asked.

"Well, all your friends, your mother, Dr. Olendski, Headmistress Kirova, Guardian Petrov and the rest of the school Guardians." he replied.

"So we don't have to hide anymore?" I asked hopefully.

"No, we don't." he replied with a full, breathtaking smile. I lived for those smiles; they made my day.

"Let's go to my room so I can get a shower. Feel free to watch TV while you wait for me." I told him. He nodded, and we made our way to my room.

I felt very refreshed after my shower. I picked out some black skinny jeans, a purple tank top that had a guitar on it and some purple Converse. I felt like a rocker in this outfit.

"So where to?" Dimitri asked.

"Hold on, I gotta text my friends and tell them to meet us in Lissa's room." I replied.

I sent this to Lissa:

Hey Liss! Let's meet up in my room. Get Christian & come in 20 mins. Don't b late!

I sent this to Eddie:

Hey Eddie! Come to my room in 20 mins. I wanna c u cuz we haven't talked in a while. Don't b late!

I sent this to Adrian:

Hey Drunkard! Swing by my room in 20 mins. K? Don't b late!

And finally, I sent this to Mia:

Hey Mia! I heard u were here at the academy. Come to my room in 20 mins, we have catching up to do :) don't b late!

Within minutes, I recieved texts back from each of them saying they'd be there. I sat on Dimitri's knee and watched TV with him while we wait.

Twenty minutes later, there were knocks at my door. I opened it up and saw the whole gang standing outside. I was pulled into a group hug.

"Can't . . . breathe . . ." I gasped out. They relased their hold on me.

"Ohmigosh Rose! We were so worried about you!" Mia sqealed.

"Yeah, don't do that to us again." Eddie added. He and Mia grinned at eachother. Hmm, I wonder if there's something going on between them . . .

"So, how have you all been?" I asked.

**I know it's weird to end it there, but my mom is yelling at me and telling me to go to bed. I hope this is good enough :) REVIEW :D**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Hey peeps! How was your week? I had a great first week of high school :D As much as I wish I could, I won't be able to update any of my stories as much as I usually do from now on, but I'll do my best on the weekends to give you an update every day. During the week, it could really be any day. So bear with me, because I'm just gonna be really busy.**

**Disclaimer: Really? I have to do it? Ugh. As much as I wish it was, VA is not mine, it's Richelle Mead's. Now can I get on with the story?**

-Sarah

**CHAPTER FIVE**

_"So, how have you all been?" I asked._

Mia answered first. "Well, I've been good. Eddie has been helping me with my fighting skills every day that I've been here." she blushed a little when she said Eddie's name. Yep, there was definitely something going on between them.

"That's cool. Maybe I can help too because, let's face it, I'm amazing. No offense to you Eddie, because you're pretty amazing too. I'm just more amazing." I said with a grin. He grinned back, relief in his eyes. I realized how he must've felt when I wouldn't wake up. He probably felt like he'd lost me just like he lost Mason, because he couldn't do anything to protect me. Eddie is like a brother to me, so I hate seeing him in pain.

"Yeah, I know." he replied.

"So Ed, how have you been?" I asked him.

"To be honest, I was really worried about you, Rose. And like Mia said, I've been helping her fight."

"Well at least you don't have to worry anymore." I responded. I then turned to Lissa. "What about you, Liss? How have you been?"

"Oh Rose, it scared me so much when you wouldn't wake up. I healed your back and you didn't wake up, but I thought you were just tired and needed sleep. When I came back the next day and they told me you hadn't woken up, I got really scared. I went to visit Dimitri, and he was freaking out, demanding to see you. Then it clicked, and I healed him so he could go see you. I was hoping you'd wake up if he was there, but you didn't. From that moment on, Dimitri refused to leave your side unless it was extremely necessary. I would give you little spurts of healing everyday, but they weren't helping. How did you even manage to wake up?"

"Well, I pulled up good memories, and when I heard Dimitri in such agony I broke through the cage in my head. It exhausted me, but I did it."

"I'm just so glad you're okay. You have no idea how relieved and happy I am."

"Actually, I do." I replied, pointing to my head. Everyone laughed at that. I looked at Christian. "Hey Pyro, a little birdie told me you were crying over me. Is that true?" I asked, an evil grin on my face. Christian looked mortified. "Aww, don't worry. I love you too, bro." I told him.

"Bro?" he questioned.

"Yeah, that's right. I consider you and Eddie my brothers, since I have no siblings. Just like I consider Lissa my sister." I responded.

"Well, then I guess I love you too, sis." he said, smiling at me. It wasn't even his trademark sarcastic smile, it was a genuine smile that crinkled up the corners of his eyes and showed his pearly white teeth. I couldn't help myself; I walked over and hugged him.

I think he was shocked first, but after a few seconds he hugged me back.

I looked around the room. "If anyone here says anything about this, you're dead." I threatened. Everyone except Adrian seemed somewhat scared.

"Aw, little dhampir. I thought that we already went through this: you'd never hurt me because I'm too pretty." he said with a smirk.

"Sure I wouldn't. Whatever helps you sleep at night, Ivashkov." I replied, rolling my eyes at him. Adrian could be pretty annoying at times, but I liked having him around. Weird, I know. Because honestly, who would want Adrian around? Kidding. He's a good friend, and my life wouldn't be complete unless he was in it.

"Aren't you going to ask me how I was?" Adrian asked.

"No." I replied.

"Oh, little dhampir, I'm hurt. That was cold!" he replied, grinning.

"I just have a pretty good guess."

"And that would be?"

"Well, I'm guessing you were miserable so you spent your time smoking and getting drunk. Am I right?"

"You got it right on, Rose." Christian replied.

"You know me too well, little dhampir." Adrian stated.

"Yeah, whatever. Let's have a little fun. Who wants some drinks?" I asked.

"I'm in!" everyone yelled except for Dimitri, who gave me a disapproving look.

"Aw, come on Comrade! I'm just gonna have a few. I haven't had a drink in a while!" I whined.

"Fine, but I'm supervising." he replied.

"Thanks Dimitri!" I jumped into his arms and hugged him. Then he leaned down and kissed me.

"AWWWWWWWW!" Lissa and Mia chorused. Dimitri and I chuckled and pulled away from eachother. He put me down and took my hand.

Since Adrian was the one with all the liquor, we decided to go to his room. It wasn't too long to walk from the dhampir dorms to the guest housing, and we all walked in comfortable silence.

When we got to Adrian's apartment, we all sat on the floor while he got some liquor.

"Hey Rose, do you want something strong?" Adrian asked.

"It depends on what it is."

"It's Russian vodka." hmm . . . Russian vodka.

"Sure."

"Um, Roza, I really don't think you should." Dimitri said.

"Why not?" I asked.

"Because it's really strong."

"Too bad! I'm gonna try it anyways!" I replied in a sing-song voice. He just sighed, and Adrian handed me a glass.

I put the glass up to my lips and took a big swig of the vodka. It took all of my willpower to not spit it out.

"What the hell do they use this for? Rocket fuel?" I spat.

"I told you not to do it . . ." Dimitri replied.

"Whatever." I said sullenly. "Adrian, you got any Smirnoff Ice?" I asked.

"Sure. You want some?"

"Uh . . . DUH!"

"Coming right up!" he handed me a bottle and I began to drink it. Now this, I could handle. Never again will I drink that damn rocket fuel.

"So Comrade, when are you gonna teach me how to swear in Russian?" I asked.

"Never." he replied with a chuckle.

"Aww! Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeease!" I asked in a whiny voice.

"Yeah! Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeese?" Lissa asked, her tone matching mine.

Dimitri sighed. "Fine."

"Yay!" Lissa and I squealed. Everyone seemed interested in learning Russian swear words.

"What first?" Dimitri asked.

I thought for a second, then decided. "Shit." I replied.

"Govno."

"Govno?"

"Govno."

"Hey Adrian, you're a piece of govno!" I teased.

"Hey!" he said, an expression of mock hurt on his face. Dimitri chuckled.

"What next?" he asked.

"Ass." Lissa replied.

"Zhopa."

"Christian, you're a huuuuuuge zhopa!" I said.

"Dimitri, what's the Russian word for bitch?" Christian asked.

"Cyka."

"Oh yeah, Rose? Well you're a cyka. Now we're even."

"Fine." I mumbled. I took another long drink of my Smirnoff Ice. I kept drinking it till it was gone. "Hey Adrian, can I have another one?"

"Sure little dhampir." he replied, getting up and grabbing me another one.

"Who wants me to chug this?" I asked excitedly.

"ME!" everyone yelled. Even Dimitri.

"Okay. One, two, three, GO!" I yelled. I downed the bottle in ten seconds.

"Nice!" Christian said, reaching over to give me a high-five.

"Hey Adrian, can I have some of that Russian vodka?" Dimitri asked. Whoa. Was not expecting that one.

"Sure, but lets see who, between us, can drink a bottle faster."

"Deal." Dimitri replied. This should be amusing.

Adrian produced two bottles of rocket fuel, and he and Dimitri uncapped them.

"On the count of three." Eddie said. "One, two, three!" and they began.

It was pretty close, but Dimitri won by about two seconds. He didn't even flinch at the burn! I got up to grab another Smirnoff Ice, seeing as I chugged my last one.

We were starting to get drunk. Well actually, Lissa was already drunk after two coolers! What a lightweight! I was on my fifth Smirnoff Ice at this point in the night. One more, and I'd probably be drunk. Dimitri didn't drink anything after the rocket fuel, so he was the only one who was nowhere near drunk. He stood up, pulling me with him.

"Whoa! What's going on? Where are we going?" I slurred. Huh. I was more drunk than I thought. Ha. That's funny.

"I am going to take you back to your room because I think you've had enough to drink."

"Aww! Every party has a pooper that's why we invited you. Party Pooper! Party Pooper! Every party has a pooper that's why we invited you. Dimitri Belikov! Dimitri Belikov!" I sang. Then he picked me up, forcing me to leave.

"See you guys!" I yelled. He carried me back to my room and laid me down on my bed.

"Comrade, stay with me tonight."

"Roza . . ."

"No. Stay here. I won't take no for an answer."

"Fine . . ." he said, crawling into bed beside me. I snuggled up to him, content and drunk.

I was almost asleep when I felt nauseous. Not Strigoi nauseous-I'm about to puke because I'm drunk nauseous. I shot up, clamping my hand over my mouth and barely made it to the toilet. Dimitri followed right after me, and he held my hair back so I wouldn't puke on it.

"Thanks Dimitri." I said after brushing my teeth. He carried me back to bed, where I quickly fell asleep to the sound of his heartbeat.

**Did you guys like it? I hope so. The only way I'll know is if you REVIEW :D**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Okay, I know that you guys probably hate me, a lot. I'm soo sorry I haven't updated in a few days, I just haven't had much time to write lately. I only finished this chapter today because I was sick and stayed home from school. Please don't hate me, because I love all of you and your reviews make me so happy :)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own VA or its characters, just my plot. Everything else belongs to Richelle Mead.**

-Sarah :)

**CHAPTER SIX**

When I woke up the next morning I-unsurprisingly-had a hangover. It wasn't too bad, though.

I was ecstatic to find Dimitri's sleeping form next to me, snoring quietly.

I got up out of bed to get a glass of water and an ibuprofen. After taking the pills and drinking the rest of my water, I crawled back into bed beside Dimitri. He started mumbling "Roza . . . Roza . . . I love you" and my heart skipped a beat. He was dreaming about me. I couldn't help pressing a kiss to his lips, even though he was asleep. He smiled in his sleep, then sighed. After a few moments, his smile faded. He started to whimper "Roza . . . No . . . You can't leave me . . . Stay with me . . . Please, no . . ." it just broke my heart. He was obviously having a nightmare about recent events. I started stroking his face, hoping to stop the nightmare without waking him up. It didn't stop though, so I had no choice but to wake him up.

I shook his arm. "Dimitri, wake up. It's just a dream." I whispered softly.

"Roza?" he asked groggily.

"I'm right here." I replied soothingly.

"Oh Roza, I had the worst dream. You wouldn't wake up and you were dying and-" he stopped, unable to continue due to the sobs rocking his body and the tears sliding down his face steadily. I just hugged him, and murmured soothing words until he stopped.

"Are you okay?" I asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine now. Thanks." he replied.

"No problem, Comrade." I said, smiling. He held me close, murmuring in Russian. After a bit, we both drifted off to sleep.

A few hours later, we both got up to get dressed for the day. I chose a denim skirt and a black tank top, with black flats. Dimitri had to go back to his room, because he had no clothes here. He kissed me before walking out the door, promising he'd be back later. I didn't have to go to school all week, since I was still technically recovering. That meant more time to spend with Dimitri, as he didn't have to work for the week either.

I grabbed my new iPod touch off of my dresser and turned it on. I scrolled through the list of songs I had, trying to find one I wanted to listen to. After a minute or two, I chose Your Guardian Angel by Red Jumpsuit Apparatus. I thought that it was just such a beautiful song, and just so true. I would do anything for Dimitri even if it meant dying.

I had my iPod up full-blast and had my eyes closed, so when someone wrapped their arms around me from behind, my eyes snapped open and I lashed out. I wiggled out of their grasp and my fist flew out to connect to their face. Just before it could hit, a warm hand grasped mine, and I realized that I had just been about to punch Dimitri.

I apologized immediately. "Oh God, Dimitri I'm so sorry!"

"It's okay, Rose. I shouldn't have snuck up on you like that." he replied with a shrug. I sat back down on his lap and snuggled into him.

"You're back soon." I commented.

"Yeah, I just had to get changed. Unlike you, I don't take forever to get ready." he smirked. I smacked his arm playfully.

"Hey! I don't take forever. I just like looking nice!" I countered.

"You always look nice. Actually, no. You always look beautiful."

I felt a blush creep up my cheeks. "Aw, thanks Dimi!"

"Dimi?" he questioned.

"It's my new nickname for you." I replied, smiling.

He chuckled. "You're strange, Roza. I guess that's why I love you."

"Only one reason?"

"One of many."

"Like what?"

"Well, you're beautiful, strong, sexy, loving, caring, understanding, outgoing, fierce, amazing, funny, a total smart-ass . . ." he ticked each word off on his fingers, but trailed off and leaned down to kiss me. It was sweet, and filled with love.

"You know why I love you?" I asked when we broke apart.

He seemed amused. "Why?"

"Because you're you."

"There you go again, summing up into three words what it takes me a whole sentence to say."

"It's a talent." I shrugged.

He chuckled and kissed me again, more ardently than before. Heat blossomed between us, and I wanted nothing more thank to feel his skin against mine, but being Dimitri, he pulled away before anything happed.

I immediately felt my lips slip into a pout. Dimitri laughed softly, and I glared at him.

"Oh Roza . . . you know we can't be together again until after graduation. I thought I already told you that."

"Right. Sorry, I guess I forgot about that. I've kind of been repressing thoughts related to the attack." I shuddered involuntarily. He wrapped his arms around me and murmured sweet-nothings in my ear. I sighed in content.

We sat, arms wrapped around eachother, for a few more moments before Dimitri spoke.

"Have you seen your mother yet?"

"Ummm . . . no. She's still here?"

"Yes . . . she's been in her room, refusing to come out. She was completely heartbroken when she saw you thrown against the wall."

"Well, do you want to come with me to see her? The three of us obviously need to talk."

Dimitri sighed. "I suppose . . . I hope she doesn't kill me."

"Don't worry; she won't. I'll make sure of it."

"Let's go then. I'm sure she's eager to see that you're okay." He took my hand and pulled me off the bed. We set out for my mother's room, not letting go of eachothers hands.

We arrived after a few minutes of walking. Dimitri seemed jittery, so I squeezed his hand reassuringly. He calmed a little, but once I knocked he was nervous again.

"Who's there?" a hoarse voice called from the inside. She sounded like she had been crying.

"It's me, mom. Dimitri too."

I heard the creaking of the mattress and then a thump before the door opened to reveal my mother's tear-streaked face. She looked older; as if the past few days had been years. I released Dimitri's hand to wrap my arms around my mother's petite frame. She cried into my shoulder, and I simply rubbed her back to soothe her.

She composed herself enough to speak. "Oh God, Rose. You have no idea how happy I am to see you!" she cried.

"I know mom, I'm happy to see you too." I murmured.

"I'm sorry I didn't visit you while you were at the clinic, although you wouldn't have known if I had or not . . . I just couldn't bear to see you like that. It was too much for me."

"I understand mom, and I actually would've known if it was about two days before my eyes opened. I could hear at that point."

She gasped. "What do you mean?"

I went on to explain how I was trapped inside my own mind, hearing and feeling, but not moving. She looked shocked at first, but shock soon transformed into guilt.

"Oh Rose, I feel bad that I didn't come see you when you would've known I was there . . ."

"It's okay mom, I had Dimitri, Lissa, Christian and Adrian. It's not like I was alone."

"I know, but I should've been there for you. I know I never have been, which is why I want to try now."

"That's all I've ever wanted, mom."

"I love you Rose."

"Love you too, mom." we hugged, then it was silent for a few moments.

Mom broke the silence. "So, about you two . . ." she pointed at Dimitri and I.

Here it comes. "Yes?" I stayed calm and cool.

"How long had this been going on?"

"Well, I was instantly attracted to him, and I guess our feelings for eachother really developed during our training sessions." I moved closer to Dimitri and took his hand in mine again.

"I would normally be mad, but I guess I can't ignore the fact that you two actually love eachother and it's not some stupid crush. I guess I really knew it when you ran back to the caves for him, no matter the risk to yourself. And when you were in a coma, I heard he never even left your side. You two are meant for eachother, and I can see that. It's just a little shocking, that's all."

"Thank you so much, Janine." Dimitri said sincerely.

Mom just shrugged, then replied, "No problem. But let me just say this: If you ever hurt my daughter, you'll have me to deal with. Got it?" she looked uite menacing as she said that. Dimitri paled a little.

"I will never, ever hurt Roza. I love her with all my heart."

"Awwww! I love you too, Comrade!" I reached my face up and pecked him on the lips.

Mom looked suddenly uncomfortable. "Mom, come on! It's not like you've never kissed or seen someone kiss before!" I said, teasing her.

She shook her head. "No, it's not that."

I was confused. "Then what is it?"

"Well . . . it's about your father."

Now I was **really** confused. "My father?"

"Yes, your father. Every year, I give him updates on you. I told him about what just happened to you, and he wants to meet you."

My jaw must've dropped right to the floor. "Why now? Why not before?"

"Well, we both thought it would be better if he wasn't in your life, but now we see how life can end in the blink of an eye. He wants to meet you because you almost died back at the caves." she replied.

I was too shocked for words, and so Dimitri asked the question that he knew I wanted to ask. "When will he be here?"

"Tomorrow." she replied.

I fainted.

**:O OMG, Rose was so shocked that she fainted! How will she react to Abe? How will Dimitri and Janine react to her fainting? You won't know until you review :) I want 5-10 reviews!**

**Oh and, a little question for you guys:**

**Do you want Rose to magically get pregnant in my story? I really really really wanna know what you guys think :)**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Okay, so I haven't updated in a few days. Sorry about that :)**

**Check out the poll on my profile, it's for this story.**

**I hope you like this chapter!**

**Disclaimer: No, I'm not Richelle Mead, therefore I do not own VA or its characters, no matter how much I wish I did.**

**CHAPTER SEVEN**

**Dimitri POV**

Well . . .

Janine had just told Rose that her father, whom she'd never even met, was coming here. Tomorrow. Poor Rose fainted because she was so shocked.

"Oh God, what do we do?" Janine was frantic.

I decided to try to be calm. "Calm down Janine, let's just take her to the med clinic for rest. That was a huge bomb to drop on her."

She looked ashamed. "I know, but I had to tell her today since he's coming tomorrow."

I picked Rose up. "Well, let's just get her to the clinic."

Janine nodded, and we ran in silence to the clinic. Janine should waited a little longer to tell Rose about her father. Maybe she figured that since Rose was so happy with her acceptance of us, she would tell her then.

We opened the doors of the clinic, and Dr. Olendski looked up at us.

"What happened now?" she asked.

I looked at Janine expectantly.

"Well . . . I told her that her father was going to visit tomorrow and she, well, she fainted." Janine explained.

Dr. Olendski turned to me. "Bring her in here and put her on the bed." she pointed to the room where Rose had been the other day.

I nodded and did as she asked.

After I laid her down on the bed, I moved her hair out of her face. God, she was beautiful.

Janine sat silently in the corner and watched me. I just held Rose's hand.

After what seemed like forever, but in reality was only about a half hour, Rose's eyes fluttered open.

I crushed her in a tight hug and murmured to her.

"О Roza! Я так волновался о Вас! Вы хорошо?" she gave me a weird look, and I realized I'd been speaking in Russian and she didn't understand. "I said 'Oh Roza! I was so worried about you! Are you okay?'"

"I'm fine. Just . . . surprised, I guess." she replied.

Janine came over to the bed. "Rose, I'm so sorry!"

"It's okay, mom. So what is my father's name?" she asked.

"Ibrahim Mazur." Janine replied.

Ibrahim, Ibrahim . . . why does that sound familiar? Then I got it.

"Janine, Ibrahim as in Abe Mazur?" I asked.

"Yes, do you know him?"

"Yes, my family knows him." Wow, my Roza is a mobster's daughter. Now that I really think about it, I can see the resemblance. Her dark brown hair, her eyes, her attitude . . . that's all Abe.

Rose looked at me. "Wow, you knew my father before I did. That's not fair!" she was upset. She got up off the bed and stormed out of the room.

"Roza, wait!" I called out after her. She didn't stop, or even turn around. I was about to run after her when Janine put her hand on my arm.

"Let her go. She needs a minute."

I wanted so badly to run after her, comfort her, but Janine was right. "Fine. I'm going back to my room."

"Me too. Goodbye Dimitri."

"Bye Janine."

I walked to my room thinking about what to do about Rose. Then I got a brilliant idea that she would love! I set out to do what I had to to prepare.

**Rose POV**

Why is life so unfair?

Dimitri knew my father before I did.

I knew that I was being really childish, but I couldn't help it.

I stormed out of the clinic, not really knowing where I was headed. I just really needed some time to think.

My body knew where it was headed before my mind did. I was walking towards the cabin.

I walked through the door of the little place and sat down on the bed. It still hadn't been made after Dimitri and I had been here.

I just sat and thought of everything. Is Dimitri angry with me for leaving? Will I like my father? Will he like me? Will he approve of Dimitri and I? What will he be like?

I sat there thinking for an hour before heading back to my room. It was chilly out, and even though the attack was long gone, the Academy still had the marks left behind.

I opened the door to my room.

Dimitri was in front of the window, looking out over the campus. He turned around when I closed the door.

I spoke. "Hey Dimi-" I was cut off by his warm lips on mine. He wrapped his strong arms around me and held me tight. His tongue moved across my lip, asking for entrance. My mouth opened, and the dance began.

He pulled me towards the bed, not once breaking the kiss.

I broke away from him. "I thought we had to wait until after graduation."

"Screw graduation!" he growled. God he was sexy! And so the clothing removal started.

**(A/N: I don't write lemons, I'm only 13. If someone wants to, just ask.)**

I laid back against Dimitri's warm, perfect chest and sighed in content.

"I love you so much, Dimitri Belikov." I declared.

"I love you too, my beautiful Rose. You are my one and only love."

I snuggled myself closer to him, and he tightened his arms around my torso, and we drifted off into a peaceful sleep.

Or, at least it was peaceful for him.

I was dreaming, no, having a nightmare.

We were back at the caves.

There were seven Strigoi, each holding someone important to me. One held Lissa, one held Christian, one held Adrian, one held my mother, one held Eddie, one held Mia and the last one, the blonde one, held Dimitri.

My friends all shot me pleading glances, begging me to save them. The Strigoi each had a hand firmly gripping my loved ones' throats, ready to snap their necks.

The Strigoi holding Mia stepped forward.

"Rose! Please, help me! Plea-" Mia's pleads for help were cut off by a sick snapping of a bone, and her head was twisted in an unnatural angle. Her limp body fell to the ground.

"No!" I cried.

The Strigoi holding Eddie stepped forward.

"Thanks a lot, Rose. First Mason, now me. I hate you." then he too fell to the ground, head twisted.

"I'm sorry Eddie! I didn't mean to!" I whispered to no one but myself.

The Strigoi holding Adrian stepped forward.

"Please, little dhampir. Don't let them kill me! I don't want to die!" he begged. I tried running to him, but my feet were firmly planted to the ground. The Strigoi tightened his hold and choked Adrian until he took his last breath. His body fell to the ground with a thud.

It began to rain, and I was cold.

The Strigoi holding Christian stepped forward.

"Christian! Use your fire, do something!" I yelled.

"I can't, Rose. You have to save us, you're the only one who can!"

"But I can't move!"

"Try! You need to tr-" the Strigoi ripped his throat out, and blood spattered everywhere. His eyes, although he was dead now, were still focused on me. I tried moving again, and managed to move one step.

The Strigoi holding my mother stepped forward.

"Mom . . ." I whispered brokenly.

"I'm sorry that I was never there for you, Rose. I love you." the Strigoi's fangs bit hard into her neck, and it drank until she was completely drained.

I fell to the ground, my body shaking violently from the cold and the sobs.

The Strigoi holding Lissa stepped forward.

"I thought you would always protect me. You were like my sister, Rose. How could you let this happen to me?"

"I'm sorry, Liss!" I urged my feet forward, and managed a few steps until I was about three feet away from Lissa.

"Sorry doesn't fix anything. I hope you're happy." with a last look of hatred, the Strigoi drained her.

The blonde Strigoi, the one clutching Dimitri's neck stepped forward.

Dimitri looked terrified, and his eyes held only panic.

"Roza . . . You said that you wouldn't ever let anything happen to me. You lied to me."

"No, I didn't! I will save you!" I screamed.

I broke free from whatever was weighing me down and ran to Dimitri.

"I don't think so." The blond Strigoi said in a chilling voice. Two of the Strigoi that had been holding my friends ran over and grabbed me.

"Dimitri!" I screamed as loud as I could, tears streaming down my face.

"Liar." Dimitri yelled before the Strigoi sank his fangs into Dimitri's neck. When he finished, I expected him to drop Dimitri's body like the rest, but no. The blond bit his own wrist, drawing blood, and lifted it to Dimitri's lips. I realized he was going to be turned.

I shrieked in defiance. The Strigoi that were gripping my arms released me, and I lunged for the blond. He disappeared into thin air, along with the other Strigoi and the bodies of my friends. All that was left was Dimitri.

His skin was rapidly growing pale, and from his open mouth, I could see fangs growing.

His eyes snapped open, and they were no longer the warm, chocolate shade of brown. They were ringed in red, and looked _cold_.

He tsked. "Ah, Roza . . . you failed to protect me, so now you will pay." and with Strigoi speed, he pinned me and his fangs dug in to the skin of my neck. I cried out in pain, for some reason there were no endorphins to numb me. Just increasing pain, and weakness as my life flooded out of me.

The scene suddenly changed.

I was back in my room, surrounded by my friends.

Dimitri was in front of my face, staring into my eyes.

"Get away from me!" I shrieked. I pushed him away and jumped off the bed, running to a corner.

Everyone looked cautious. "Rose, what's wrong?" Dimitri asked, raising his hands up in the gesture of surrender.

I saw his skin, his warm, tanned skin. I looked up at his eyes, and they were the familiar chocolatey brown.

I jumped up and ran into his arms, sobbing violently and crying hard.

Dimitri smoothed my hair. "Shhhhh . . . It's okay, Roza. You're safe now. Shh." he sat down on the bed and cradled me gently, rocking me slowly back and forth to quiet the sobs.

Lissa stepped up in front of us. "Rose, what happened? You wouldn't wake up, and you were screaming at the top of your lungs!"

My voice quivered. "I don't want to talk about it right now. Maybe tomorrow."

She nodded. "Are you okay?" she asked.

"I hope so . . ." I whispered. I reached a hand up to my neck, as if there were bite marks there.

When I pulled my hand back, there was slick, dark liquid on my fingers.

I screamed.

**Cliffhanger :) Did you guys like it? I know I did :D**

**Don't forget to check out the poll on my profile for this story :)**

**Review :) I update faster with reviews.**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: I hope you guys like this chapter, there's a few different POVs. I really enjoyed writing this, so I hope you enjoy reading it. I loved getting into the minds of other characters, it was fun :)**

**Check out the poll on my profile, I need votes! It's going to decide something huge in my story, and the outcome will decide whether I need to write a sequel when this is done or not :D**

**Disclaimer: I don't own VA or its characters, they belong to the extremely talented Richelle Mead. I only wish they were mine...**

-Sarah

**CHAPTER EIGHT**

**Dimitri POV**

I had just fallen asleep with my beautiful Roza wrapped safely in my arms.

I was dreaming of us living together, and she had my ring on her finger, the way I've always wanted it. It was such a great dream, and I never wanted it to end, but it was short-lived.

I was awakened to the sound of Rose whimpering things like, "No . . . I'm sorry . . . Please . . . I didn't lie . . . Don't hate me . . ." then a piercing scream filled the room. She kept screaming, and when I shook her, she didn't wake up.

"Rose, wake up. Please wake up, Roza. It's just a dream." I murmured, but she wasn't waking up.

I grabbed my cell phone off the nightstand and dialed Lissa's number.

"Hello?" a sleepy voice said.

I was panicking. "Lissa, it's Dimitri. Rose is screaming in her sleep and I can't wake her up. I don't know what to do!"

"Calm down. I'll be right over."

"Please hurry, I'm really worried about her."

"Bye." then the line disconnected.

I started pacing. Rose was still screaming, and each one was filled with fear and agony. Each one tore at my heart because there was nothing that I could do to help her.

Moments later, there was a knock at the door. I walked over to open it, revealing Lissa, Christian and Adrian.

"Wow, you weren't kidding. We could hear her screaming from outside the building!" Lissa said.

"I know. Now can you please do something?" my patience was wearing thin. I wanted to comfort her, to get her away from whatever was scaring her so much.

"Yes. That's why we brought Adrian along." Lissa replied.

"I'll try to get into her dream and see what's got get so scared, then I'll try to pull her out. Okay?" Adrian looked to me for permission.

"Just do whatever you need to do to get her out." I replied. He nodded, and went to sit on the couch, closing his eyes.

**Adrian POV**

I sat down on Rose's couch and shut my eyes, focusing on her mind.

When I opened my eyes, I was in front of some caves, but I was hidden behind some bushes.

What I saw before me was horrific.

There were some Strigoi holding Lissa, Christian, Janine, Dimitri, and _me_. Eddie and Mia's lifeless bodies were on the cold ground, their heads twisted in unnatural angles.

The Strigoi that was holding Rose's dream version of me stepped forward.

The dream me started pleading with Rose. "Please, little dhampir. Don't let them kill me! I don't want to die!" then the Strigoi tightened its hold on the neck of the dream me, and it slowly choked to death. It then started raining in Rose's dream, and she shivered.

The one holding Christian stepped forward next.

Rose yelled to him. "Christian! Use your fire, do something!"

Christian shook his head as much as he could manage. "I can't, Rose. You have to save us, you're the only one who can!"

Rose looked like she was trying to move. "But I can't move!" she cried.

Christian looked pleading. "Try! You need to tr-" he was cut off by the Strigoi holding him ripping his throat out. I wanted desperately to puke. There was blood everywhere, and Christian's unseeing eyes were still fixed on Rose.

She moved forward one step.

The Strigoi holding Rose's mom stepped up.

"Mom . . ." Rose whispered so low that if I hadn't had great hearing, I wouldn't have heard her.

Rose's mom looked pained. "I'm sorry that I was never there for you, Rose. I love you." The Strigoi's fangs bit into Janine's neck, and the life faded out of her eyes.

Rose fell to the ground, shaking violently.

Oh no, the Strigoi holding Lissa stepped forward.

Lissa looked hateful. "I thought you would always protect me. You were like my sister, Rose. How could you let this happen to me?"

Rose looked sick. "I'm sorry, Liss!" she got up and managed to move a few more steps, until she was probably three feet away from Lissa.

"Sorry doesn't fix anything. I hope you're happy." Lissa looked at Rose one last time with a look of intense hatred before the Strigoi drained her too. Wow, that was harsh.

The last Strigoi, the one holding Dimitri, stepped forward.

Dimitri's eyes were filled with terror. "Roza . . . You said that you wouldn't let anything happen to me. You lied to me."

"No, I didn't! I will save you!" she screamed. She lurched forward and ran to Dimitri.

The Strigoi holding Dimitri, a blond one, spoke. "I don't think so." two of the other Strigoi stepped forward and grabbed Rose.

Tears were running down Rose's face. "Dimitri!" she screamed as loud as she could.

Dimitri looked accusatory. "Liar." he yelled before the blond Strigoi sank his teeth into Dimitri's neck. The blond then proceeded to bite his own wrist, drawing blood. He put his wrist onto Dimitri's lips, forcing the blood into his dead body. _Oh SHIT! _I thought. Rose is freaking out.

She shook the Strigoi off of her and shrieked. She lunged for the blond, but he disappeared, along with the bodies and the other Strigoi. All that was left was Dimitri. His skin was deathly pale, and fangs were growing in his mouth. His eyes flew open, and they were now ringed in red.

He tsked. "Ah, Roza . . . you failed to protect me, so now you will pay." he had Rose pinned in a matter of seconds and his fangs bit hard into her neck. She started screaming and thrashing, but his hold never weakened. I was sick to my stomach, watching Rose being drained. Her thrashes grew weaker, but not the screams. Those were forever burned into my mind. I needed to get Rose out of this dream, and fast.

I focus all my energy on pulling both of us out, and when my eyes opened again, I was looking into the worried eyes of my friends.

Rose's screams dropped off, and everything was silent.

Her eyes snapped open, and Dimitri was right in her face.

She started freaking out. "Get away from me!" she pushed Dimitri away and huddled in a corner. She was wearing only a bra and panties, and had it been a different situation, I would've thought she was hot.

Dimitri raised his hands up in surrender. "Rose," he said cautiously, "what's wrong?"

She seemed to be examining him. She suddenly jumped up and ran into his arms, sobbing and crying hysterically.

He tried to quiet her by smoothing her hair and murmuring to her.

Lissa walked over to them. "Rose, what happened? You wouldn't wake up, and you were screaming at the top of your lungs!"

Rose's voice quivered when she answered Lissa. "I don't want to talk about it right now. Maybe tomorrow." I understand, I saw first-hand what she saw. I was horrified, but she was terrified.

Lissa nodded. "Are you okay?"

Rose whispered something that sounded like "I hope so . . ." her hand suddenly flew up to her neck, as if she were checking for bite marks. When she pulled her hand back, I was terrified.

There was dark blood on her fingers, and she screamed.

The room was silent, other than Rose's shrieks.

"But . . . how?" I choked out. Dimitri was trying to calm Rose, but Lissa and Christian turned to me for answers.

"Adrian, what happened in her dream?" Christian asked.

"I . . . I . . . I don't know if Rose wants me to tell."

Lissa looked weary. "Adrian, please. Just tell us."

"I'm not so sure that you guys will want to know."

"We can handle it." Christian replied.

"Fine. We were all outside of some caves, you two, Mia, Eddie, Janine, Dimitri and I, and Strigoi had each of us by our necks. Rose was frozen in place, and one by one, the Strigoi killed us. They choked me, ripped Christian's throat out, drained you and Janine, broke Mia and Eddie's necks, and they . . . they turned Dimitri. Some of us said really mean and hurtful things to Rose before being killed. Once Dimitri was turned, the other Strigoi and our bodies disappeared, leaving only Rose and Dimitri. Dimitri pinned her and started draining her, and she was screaming and thrashing violently. That's when I pulled us out."

Lissa and Christian looked shocked, horrified, and terrified.

Lissa spoke. "Who . . . Who said horrible things to her?"

"Well, I don't know about Mia or Eddie because they were already dead when I got there, but you and Dimitri said the most horrible things to her." I admitted.

Lissa was shaking. "What did I say to her?"

"You said, 'I thought you would always protect me. You were like my sister, Rose. How could you let this happen to me?' and then Rose said 'I'm sorry, Liss!' and then you said, 'Sorry doesn't fix anything. I hope you're happy.'" when I finished, Lissa fell to the ground, tears streaming down her face. Christian pulled her into his arms.

"Is she bleeding because of Dimitri?" Christian whispered.

"Yes. But don't tell him, if he finds out that Rose is like this because of him, he'll freak." Christian nodded, and started trying to soothe Lissa.

I walked over to Dimitri and Rose, who was now quiet. She looked at me.

"Rose," I started, "I know what happened. I was there."

"You were there?" she whispered.

"Yes. I should've pulled you out sooner. I'm sorry. Let me see your neck so I can fix you up."

She tilted her head to the side, and I saw two little puncture marks. Dimitri gasped when he saw them. I glared at him.

I reached my hand out to touch her neck, satisfied when the little holes closed up. I walked into Rose's bathroom and grabbed a warm cloth to wipe away the blood.

I gingerly pressed it to her neck.

"Thank you, Adrian."

"No problem, little dhampir. I'm tired, so I'm gonna leave. We can talk about this whenever you're ready."

"Okay. Bye Adrian."

"Bye little dhampir." I walked out the door, ready to get some sleep.

**Rose POV**

That was the scariest dream I'd ever had.

I noticed Lissa and Christian questioning Adrian over in the corner. I wonder why?

Lissa suddenly dropped to the ground, crying her eyes out. Christian reached down and picked her up, and whispered something to Adrian.

Adrian got up and walked over to Dimitri and I.

He looked at me, then spoke. "Rose, I know what happened. I was there."

Whoa. "You were there?" I whispered. That means that he probably heard everything and saw himself die.

He looked apologetic. "Yes. I should've pulled you out sooner. I'm sorry. Let me see your neck so I can fix you up."

I tilted my head to the side, and heard Dimitri gasp. I grimaced, and Adrian glared at him.

He reached out to touch my neck, and I felt the familiar hot and cold sensation that I felt everytime I was healed. Adrian walked away, into my bathroom.

"What happened, Rose?" Dimitri asked. I could hear the concern in his voice, but there was no way I was telling him. Yet.

"I don't want to talk about it right now." Adrian returned with a cloth. He gently pressed it to my neck, effectively wiping away the blood.

I thanked him. "Thank you, Adrian."

"No problem, little dhampir. I'm tired, so I'm gonna leave. We can talk about this whenever you're ready."

I was grateful. "Okay Adrian. Bye."

"Bye little dhampir." then he walked out the door.

Lissa and Christian walked up.

"Rose, I'm so sorry for what I said in your dream. You know that I'd never ever say that for real, don't you?"

Damn, Adrian must've told her. "I know, Liss. It's okay."

She visibly relaxed. She sat down and hugged me.

Christian spoke up. "Come on Liss, I'm sure that Rose wants to sleep. Let's go, you can see her tomorrow."

Tomorrow . . . I was meeting my dad tomorrow. "Wait, I don't know what time. I guess I'm going to meet my father tomorrow."

Lissa looked shocked. "Your father?"

"Yep. Mom dropped that bomb on me earlier and I kinda fainted . . ."

"Wow. You should bring him to meet us later."

"Sure, Liss. Now go get some more sleep. Sorry you guys had to come here in the middle of the night."

"It was no problem, Rose. We're just glad that you're okay." Christian assured me.

"Thanks guys." they nodded and left.

I turned to Dimitri. "Sorry if I scared you, Comrade."

He was silent. "Dimitri . . . I don't want to talk about it tonight. I will tell you, just not now. I just can't talk about it right now." a tear slipped down my cheek.

His thumb came up and wiped it away. "Oh Roza . . . don't cry. I'm sorry, I'm just really worried about you. Don't cry." I cried even more when he called me Roza, because I saw those red eyes, the pale skin . . . No. I needed to push that image away. It was never going to happen, so I needed it out of my head.

Dimitri was drawing circles on my back, and I realized that I was only wearing my bra and panties. Great.

Dimitri must've noticed my grimace. "What?"

"My friends were here, and I'm only wearing my bra and panties."

He chuckled. "I know . . . I probably should've put some clothes on you, but you're too beautiful."

I smacked his bare chest playfully. "Will you just kiss me please?"

"Sure, Rose." he pressed his lips to mine, gently and carefully, probably afraid of another outburst. I needed to show him that that wouldn't happen. I threw myself into that kiss, and he responded with eager, warm lips. He trailed warm kisses down my neck, and I froze. _No, no, no! Don't think of that! _I silently chastised myself. I hoped he didn't notice my hesitation, but he notices everything.

"Did I do something wrong?" he asked.

I couldn't look him in the eyes. "No . . ." I mumbled, looking down.

"It's something to do with your dream, isn't it?"

I sighed. "Leave it alone, Dimitri."

"Roza, you need to talk to me. I'm here, I'm listening."

I reached my breaking point. "You want to know? Fine! We were outside the caves, and Strigoi killed all of you guys and the blond Strigoi turned you. You were trying to kill me, that's why I had bite marks, and why I was screaming. Happy?"

I was expecting him to walk away, to leave, but no. He crushed me tighter to his chest. "Rose, you know that's not going to happen. I would never hurt you, never!" he cried.

"I know . . . I just can't get the image out of my head. I love you, and I know you'd never hurt me."

"Good. Now come on, get some sleep. You have a big day tomorrow."

"But what if I have another nightmare?"

"Don't worry. I'll be here for you, and if you do I'll call Adrian."

"Thanks Comrade. I love you."

"I love you too, Roza." I fell asleep to his heartbeat and Russian lullabies, aware even in sleep that he would keep me safe.

**Please review, they help me write faster :)**

**Don't forget to check the poll on my profile :D**

**I'll update again when I get to 60-65 reviews. I'm at 49 right now, so get reviewing!**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: I said 60-65 and I got 63, so I'm going to update tonight. I hope you like this chapter, Rose finally meets Abe! I loved writing this chapter, and I decided to give Rose a happy day after all that she went through the night before.**

**Disclaimer: I, Sarah, do not own VA or any of it's characters. They all come from the creative mind of the extremely talented red-head, Richelle Mead. I clearly am not Richelle, as I have brown and blonde hair.**

**CHAPTER NINE**

I woke up the next morning (well, evening. You know how twisted our schedule is.) feeling refreshed. I was surprised and relieved that I had not had another nightmare.

I turned to face a sleeping Dimitri. I really didn't want to wake him up, but we had to go meet my father soon.

I gently shook him. "Dimitri, wake up." he groaned. "Dimitri," I warned, "come on. We have to go meet my dad soon."

"Uhhhh . . . five more minutes." he grumbled.

"Wow, usually I'm the one that's hard to wake up. But seriously, if you don't get up in the next minute, you're going to get attacked by pillows."

He rolled over. "Too bad."

I sat and waited for a minute exactly. "You got your warning." I muttered before grabbing two fluffy pillows and beating the crap out of Dimitri.

"Roza . . . come on! Stop it!" he growled, but I didn't listen. I just kept wailing on him with the pillows.

He suddenly sprung up. "That's it, you're on." he grabbed two fluffy pillows of his own, and the war began.

By the time we were finished, there were feathers everywhere, including all over the two of us. Everything was silent, for a moment at least. We suddenly burst out laughing at the sight of eachother.

"That was fun, but I need to take a shower to get these feathers out of my hair." I declared. He nodded in response. Then I thought of something. "Oh Dimi . . . surely you don't want to leave my room looking like a chicken. How about we go take a shower?"

He chuckled. "Fine, but a shower. Nothing more."

"Okay." and then I walked to the bathroom, stripping off my underwear as I went.

I turned the warm water on, letting it run over my skin. Muscled arms encircled me.

I leaned my head back onto his chest. "Mmmm."

"You're beautiful, Roza." he murmured.

"Thank you, you're pretty damn beautiful yourself."

"Here, let me wash your back."

I landed him a cloth. "Thanks Dimi!"

We stepped out of the shower, feather-free and feeling refreshed.

"Good thing you brought a change of clothes." I commented.

"Yeah, then I'd have to leave here in a towel."

"Or my clothes . . ."

He shook his head. "I think I'd rather stick with the towel."

I snorted, and turned to my drawers. I pawed through the neatly folded clothes, looking for something suitable to meet my father in. I decided on a pretty red tank top with beading on it, a black cardigan, a black skirt that rested just above my knees and red flats. I looked nice, but I could still kick ass if I wanted to. Wanting to look extra nice, I applied a bit of black eyeliner and just a bit of mascara.

Dimitri took my hand in his. "Let's go to the airstrip. Your father will be landing in twenty minutes."

I took a deep breath. "Okay. Let's do this."

We walked through the commons, not once releasing the other's hand. I still loved how we could be open about our relationship now, since all the important people here knew about us. We recieved weird stares from some of the students, mainly the royal Moroi, because no one was used to it yet. The dhampir students seemed to accept us the most, since they knew how rare it is to find love for us. We held our heads high, not stopping once, that is, until I heard Jesse.

"She's such a little slut, and he's a pervert. She's seven years younger than him! Whatever, let the little blood whore have him. Ha, a blood whore and a pervert!" Ralf just laughed, and my blood boiled.

"Don't listen to them, Rose. There just immature little asses." Dimitri whispered in my ear. As much as I wanted to hurt Jesse, I knew that Dimitri was right. Jesse was probably jealous because I didn't want him. I turned away, but not before sending Jesse and Ralf a look of such burning hatred that it could've set the whole commons on fire. They shrunk down in their seats, and I walked away, satisfied with my work.

We arrived at the academy's airstrip soon after.

My mother was standing there, looking anxious. I put my hand on her shoulder for comfort.

"Calm down, mom. What are you so worried about?" I asked.

"I haven't seen him in so long . . ." there was a wistful note in her voice, and I instantly knew that she still loved him.

"You still love him." it wasn't a question, but a statement.

"Yes." she whispered, so low that I barely heard her.

I gave her a hug. "Don't worry; I'm sure he'll be happy to see you."

She spoke a little louder this time. "I sure hope so."

Our conversation was cut short by the deafening roar of a sleek black jet, starting to land. Mom looked like she was going to faint, and I was pretty sure I looked the same. We sqeezed eachothers hands for comfort.

The door opened, and a man stepped out.

He had dark skin, well, dark for a Moroi. He had black hair and a goatee. He had sharp brown eyes. He wore a long dark coat that screamed money, paired with a cashmere crimson scarf. He wore a gold chain, as well as a matching hoop earring in one ear.

I immediately saw the resemblance between us; the hair, the eyes . . . I was there in his face.

He stepped down the stairs, followed by two burly looking dhampirs.

He walked over and stopped right in front of my mother and I.

"Hello Janine. Still as beautiful as ever, I see." he said. Whoa, mom blushed. THE Janine Hathaway just blushed.

"It's nice to see you too, Abe." she tried to appear indifferent, but she was doing a horrible job of it.

Abe turned to me. "Hello, Rose. It's nice to finally meet my little girl."

I snorted. "Nice to meet you too, _old man_." ha, that's what you get for calling me little girl.

Mom looked appalled. "Rose! Don't talk to you father like that!"

"Oh Janine, stop. Loosen up!" I was starting to like this man. I raised my hand for a high-five, which he gladly returned.

He seemed to notice Dimitri for the first time. "Well, Dimitri! It's nice to see you! What are you doing here?"

"I work here." he replied. I stepped back and Dimitri's arms folded around me.

Abe looked shocked, but quickly composed himself. "I see that's not all."

"No, I guess not. Abe, Rose and I are . . ." Dimitri seemed to be stuggling, and he looked to me for help.

I sighed. "Dad," I felt a little uncomfortable calling him dad, but I needed to soften him up, "Dimitri and I are in love."

Abe smiled. "Well, at least I know that Dimitri is a good man."

Without thinking, I started happy-dancing. Abe and Dimitri laughed at me, and mom looked at me like I was an alien. I stopped dancing, slightly embarassed.

"What was that for?" Abe asked.

"That, old man, was because I have the approval of both of my parents. Thanks, dad." his eyes twinkled when I called him dad. I pulled him into a hug, and he squeezed me tightly.

When we stepped away from eachother, he spoke to Dimitri again. "Your family misses you, Dimitri. When are you going to visit them?"

"I was thinking of going after Rose graduates, and bringing her with me." whoa, this was news to me.

I became excited. "Really?"

"Of course! I want you to meet my family, since I've met yours."

I hugged him as tight as I could, then started jumping up and down, chanting "Thankyouthankyouthankyou!" over and over. He leaned down and pecked me on the lips.

"How about we call them tonight so you can talk to them?" Dimitri suggested.

"I'd love that!" I replied.

I turned back to Abe. "Hey old man, my friends want to meet you. Will you come with me to see them?"

"Sure, I'd love to meet my little girl's friends."

"Ha, you're soo funny, dad. I'm not little."

"I'm not old."

"HA! Imagine!"

Mom shook her head. "You two are so alike, it's almost scary. Stop the bantering, and lets go see Rose's friends."

"Hold on, let me text Lissa and tell her to gather everyone in her room."

I opened my phone.

hey liss, get every1 together in ur room, im bringin dad to meet you guys. k?

I waited for a response.

k rose! omg, is he awesome?

I texted her back.

you'll have to wait and see. the sooner every1's in ur room, the sooner you'll meet him.

She sent a reply.

k, come here in 5 mins and i'll have every1 here. bye!

I sent her a reply.

bye.

"Let's start walking, she said she'd have everyone there in five minutes." they all nodded, and we began to walk to Lissa's room. We passed Jesse again, and he started talking about Dimitri and I again, but before I could say anything, Abe did.

"What did you just say about my daughter?" Abe looked scary, like he would break Jesse in half. Wow, we really are alike.

"You-your d-daughter?" Jesse stammered.

"Yes, my daughter. Don't you ever say anything about my daughter or Dimitri ever again, or you will have to deal with me." Abe cracked his knuckles. Jesse looked like he was gonna crap his pants.

"Yes sir!" Jesse replied, and we continued walking towards Lissa's room.

"Oh my God dad, you're such a badass! Now I know where I get it from!" I high-fived him again.

"Not just me, Kiz. You're mother is pretty awesome too."

"I agree. And, what does Kiz mean?"

"Kiz means daughter." Abe explained.

"In Turkish, right?" I asked. He nodded.

We arrived at Lissa's room, and I knocked on the door.

She answered almost immediately, a huge grin on her face.

"Hey Rose!"

"Hey Liss! Can we come in?"

"Of course!" we all stepped into Lissa's dorm room, and I introduced everyone.

"Dad, I'd like you to meet my best friend, Princess Vasilisa Dragomir, her boyfriend Christian, Adrian, Mia and Eddie."

Lissa sent a message through the bond. _Really, Rose? A simple Lissa would've been nice._

I laughed at her, and she pouted.

Christian stepped forward to shake Abe's hand. "Christian Ozera." he said.

"Abe Mazur."

"Adrian Ivashkov." Adrian extended his hand to Abe.

"Eddie Castile." he also shook Abe's hand.

"It's very nice to meet you." Mia said. "I'm Mia Rinaldi."

"It's nice to meet you too, Mia."

"I'm so happy that I finally get to meet Rose's father, Mr. Mazur."

"Please Princess, call me Abe."

"I will as long as you call me Lissa."

"Okay, Lissa." Lissa stepped forward and gave Abe a hug. He looked shocked, but awkwardly hugged her back.

"So, old man, what do you want to do?" I asked.

"I don't know, little girl, any suggestions?"

"I'm not little!"

"And I told you, I'm not old!"

"Yes."

"No."

"Yes."

"No."

"Will you two please stop?" mom asked.

Lissa spoke up. "Wow, they're worse than Rose and Christian! Now I see where Rose get's it from . . ." she looked like she solved the biggest mystery in the world.

"Yep. And I'm proud to call him my father." I hugged him. It was nice to finally have a father, even if he's seventeen years late.

"I'm proud to call you my daughter." I finally felt complete, like there was a void in my life that only Abe could fill.

Mom spoke again. "Rose, I have a surprise for you."

"What is it?" I asked.

"Well, you need to get your marks from the battle, so I set it up for tonight."

"How will they know how many marks to give me? I don't even remember how many Strigoi I killed."

"I know, so they're giving you a special mark, meaning that you've killed too many to count."

"What does it look like?" instead of answering me, mom turned her head, revealing a small star shaped tattoo.

I looked at Dimitri. "Did you get yours yet?"

He shook his head. "No, I'm getting mine tonight as well."

"Okay . . . when do we go?"

"In a few hours. Do whatever you want until then, and I'll come and get you when it's time." mom replied. Dimitri and I nodded.

We spent the next few hours veging in Lissa's room. Everyone loved Abe, and I was really getting to like him. We were so alike, it was funny.

We made our way to the Guardian's building, where we would recieve our battle stars.

I got mine first, and I'm not gonna lie, it hurt. But I showed no signs of pain; I kept a straight face and waited patiently for the tattoo artist to finish and be done with it. He let me have a quick look at it before bandaging it up to prevent infection.

Dimitri went up right after me, and his tattoo was done quickly and efficiently, and he soon had a bandage to match mine. I wanted so badly to scratch my neck, as it was itchy. I couldn't though, because the bandage was shielding it.

We all parted for the night, other than Dimitri and I. I promised Abe that he and I could have a father daughter day tomorrow, which would be pretty fun. Dimitri and I went to my room so we could call his family and tell them that I would be visiting.

He dialed the number and pressed the speakerphone button.

"Здравствуйте?" a female voice answered.

"Привет мама. Это - Dimitri." I loved it when Dimitri spoke in Russian.

"Dimka! Как дела ?" his mother sounded delighted.

"Хороший, мама. Если Вы не возражаете, мы могли бы пожалуйста переключиться на английский язык? Мой Roza не понимает слово, которое мы говорим." he looked at me, smiling.

"Your Roza?" she answered in english.

"Yes mama, my Roza. She is sitting here with me, and you are on speakerphone." Dimitri nudged me.

"What's her name?" I mouthed to Dimitri.

"Olena." he mouthed back.

"Hello Olena." I said.

"Hi, Roza."

"Mama, I am in love with Roza."

There was a shocked gasp from the other end. Then an excited squeal. "Oh Dimka, I knew you'd find someone!" Dimitri chuckled.

"I think you'll be surprised when you find out who's daughter she is." Dimitri said.

"Who?" Olena asked.

This time, I answered her question. "I'm Abe Mazur's daughter."

"Wow . . . Your father is a good man, Roza."

"I know . . . I just met him today and I love him already. He came to the academy to visit."

"The academy?" Olena sounded puzzled.

"Yes . . . St. Vladimir's."

"Roza, how old are you?" Olena sounded hesitant. Oh boy.

"I'll be eighteen in . . . three more days."

Dimitri spoke again. "Mama, I'm her mentor, she is my student. We fell in love when I captured her and her best friend, Lissa Dragomir after they ran away from the academy. Rose recently saved my life when the school was attacked. Had she not run back for me, I'd be dead right now."

There was a sharp intake of air on the other end of the line. "Thank you so much, Rose."

"It was no problem, Olena. I'm just glad that we're both healthy and out of the hospital."

"You were in the hospital?"

"Yes, Dimitri lost a lot of blood and I . . . I was in a coma for a week." I decided not to get into the whole broken back thing. I'd save that for when we talked face to face.

"Wow . . . you really love him, don't you?"

"With all my heart, Olena. And somehow, he loves me too." I smiled at Dimitri, and he leaned down to give me a quick kiss.

"You two must send me some pictures! I want to see the person that risked their life for my Dimka." Olena insisted.

"Will do, Olena. We'll have some pictures sent by tomorrow." I promised her.

"Karolina, Sonya and Viktoria are going to be very excited to hear about you, Roza."

"They'll love you, Roza. Viktoria is close to your age, so I'm sure you'll both get along very well." Dimitri told me.

"Olena, you have to send me some pictures of you guys." I said.

"Of course! Well, I must be going. I have to help Karolina with the baby. When will you two visit?"

Dimitri answered her. "In two months, right after Roza graduates."

"I'll be looking forward to it!" Olena answered. "Don't forget the pictures." she added.

"We won't, Olena. Don't forget the pictures of you guys either!"

"I won't. Goodbye Roza and Dimka."

"Bye mama."

"Bye Olena." the line disconnected.

"How did you like her?" Dimitri asked.

"I haven't even met her and I love her already."

He grinned. "You don't know how happy it makes me to hear that."

"We better get started on those pictures, or we will face the wrath of Olena."

Dimitri laughed. "Okay, grab your camera."

I did as he asked and grabbed my camera off my nightstand.

We took lots of pictures, ones of us smiling, making silly faces, kissing, and posing. Some of them were quite funny. I uploaded them to my laptop, and Dimitri wrote a quick email to his mother, attaching the pictures when he was done.

I yawned loudly.

"Tired?" Dimitri asked.

"Very." I replied. I changed into some pajamas and crawled into bed.

"Goodnight, Roza. I'll be here if you have another nightmare." Wow, with everything that had happened today, I had almost completely forgotten about my nightmare. That got me thinking. How did I wake up with bitemarks?

**Okay, so I haven't revealed how the bitemarks made it out of her dream. I won't be revealing it for a while, probably, so I'd like to hear what you people think happened. Oh and I think that for the next chapter, I'm gonna skip straight to graduation, because nothing special will happen between this point and graduation. I really hope you like this chapter, and don't forget to vote on my poll! It will probably be open until next friday... maybe. Vote, because the outcome of the poll will decide many things in my story.**

**Review :) I want to get to 80-85 reviews before another update! So get those fingers moving and press those keys :D**

**Oh and if you want a translation to what Olena and Dimitri were saying, pm me.**


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Well, I didn't get to 80 reviews, but since I love you guys, I'm posting this. You guys won't be so lucky next time, because when I tell you guys I want a certain amount of reviews, I will ****not**** update until I get them. Let this be a warning. **

**I really hope that you guys like this chapter, it took me FOREVER to finish. I wanted it to be positively perfect :)**

**Disclaimer: Les personnages et les livres de VA n'appartiennent pas a moi. Ils appartient a Richelle Mead.**

**The characters and books of VA do not belong to me. They belong to Richelle Mead.**

**Yeah, that's right. I made my disclaimer bilingual.**

-Sarah

**CHAPTER TEN**

**Two months later: GRADUATION!**

The day I've been waiting for my whole life is finally here. The day I graduate and become Lissa's guardian!

It seems like the past two months have flown by . . .

Abe and I have grown very close, and if possible, Dimitri and I are even more in love than before.

One thing I'm not so happy about, is the fact that we still haven't found out how the bitemarks made it out of my dream. We try to research every day, but we come up with nothing. It's frustrating!

I guess now isn't the time to be thinking about it. I am currently being held hostage be Lissa who, I quote, is gonna "pretty me up for graduation. Not that you aren't beautiful already." so I'm stuck in a chair in her room as she curls my hair into perfect ringlets, does my makeup, my nails, and gets me into the dress that we bought on a recent shopping trip.

"Liss, is this really necessary?" I whined.

"Yes," she began, "it is. Don't you want to look absolutely gorgeous when you go up on stage and graduate top of your class?" yeah, forgot to mention that one. I easily flew through the trials, coming out as top of my class. My parents and Dimitri were overjoyed, and Dimitri gave me a 'special present' if you catch my drift.

"Yeah yeah whatever." I muttered.

"Lighten up, Rose! Today we graduate and you become my sanctioned guardian, and then you're off to Baia for two weeks!" okay, I was really excited. I just didn't like all the special attention. A few months ago, sure. But not now. Things like this are trivial, they don't really matter.

"Fine. You want me to lighten up?" I asked rhetorically. "Well, okay." then I switched to a bubbly voice. "Like, ohmigosh Lissa I'm just sooooo excited to like, totally graduate! It's gonna be like, super fun!"

Lissa just laughed at that. "Hold still unless you want a mascara wand in the eye."

"Yes ma'am." she applied the mascara, effectively making my eyes even more huge then they already were. She had done the smoky eye look on me, and I'll admit that it's beautiful. Earlier, Lissa had painted my nails a lovely deep purple to match my dress.

My dress was absolutely perfect. It was a deep purple dress with a sweetheart neckline, with a ribbon wrapping around my waist. There was beading on the little straps, and the dress stopped just above my knees. I also bought some awesome black heels to go with it.

Lissa looked beautiful too, in a soft pink dress that had beading all over the top of it. She had her hair intricately placed into a beautiful updo with pink flowers in the back. Her nails were painted pink, and she had black flats on. Her makeup was simple yet beautiful, with light pink eye shadow, some black eyeliner and mascara.

We were admiring ourselves in the mirror when someone knocked at the door. We made our way over and opened it, revealing Dimitri and Christian.

"Well don't you look beautiful." Christian said, obviously talking to Lissa.

"Aww thanks Sparky! You look pretty too!" I joked.

"Ha, funny. But you look pretty too, Rosie." he replied.

Dimitri spoke, his beautifully accented voice sending shivers down my spine. "I think she looks more than merely pretty. I think she looks gorgeous." he leaned down to kiss me.

Lissa cleared her throat. "Sorry to interrupt, but graduation starts in twenty minutes and we need to get our robes on and you need to grab your cue cards for your speech."

"Yes _mom_." I replied.

Lissa shook her head and threw me my white graduation robe. "Don't you dare mess your hair up because we don't have time to fix it."

I carefully slipped it on, avoiding my hair. "There. All ready!"

Lissa and Christian had slipped theirs on too. "Let's go." Christian said.

We walked out the door, quickly making our way to where the stage was set up.

Alberta and Kirova were trying to get everyone into alphabetical order, which was proving to be a difficult job.

"Rose!" Alberta called. "Get over here with the H's."

I ran over to where she pointed and sat down.

After they had everyone seated in the right spot, they walked up on stage.

Kirova grabbed the microphone. "Welcome everyone, to the St. Vladimir's Graduation 2010!" there were loud cheers from the students and their families in the crowd.

One by one, students were called up to the stage to recieve their diplomas, starting with the Moroi students. I tuned out Kirova's voice until I heard her call Lissa's name.

"Vasilisa Dragomir." I saw Lissa stand up and walk onto the stage. She looked regal and sophisticated, and I was so proud of her.

"Woo! Go Lissa!" Eddie, Christian and I cheered in unison. Lissa looked like she was trying not to laugh, Kirova glared at us and Alberta's face remained impassive. I tuned everything out again until I heard Christian get called up.

"Christian Ozera."

"Go Sparky!" I yelled. Christian smiled at me and shook his head while Kirova sent me a death stare. It pretty much carried on like that, me cheering when a friend was called up and Kirova glaring at me. It was quite funny.

I was starting to get jittery. I was really starting to freak out about my speech . . . what if people don't like it? What if they think it's stupid? I'm usually not this concerned but I really want it to be absolutely perfect. I didn't want to mess up in front of everyone.

"Rosemarie Hathaway." Alberta called.

This is it. I took a deep, calming breath and marched up to the stage, head held high. I walked over to the podium where Alberta handed me the microphone and my diploma. I looked out into the crowd and my eyes found Dimitri sitting with my parents. Their eyes shone with pride and happiness.

I calmly spoke into the mic. "Hello everyone. I'd like to thank all of you for coming today to support a family member. As you all probably know, I'm Rosemarie Hathaway, but a simple Rose works too. I've been here at St. Vlad's my whole life, and it's been good. I've made many great memories here, ones I hope to never forget.

"I'd like to thank my mother, because had she not sent me here, I wouldn't be the woman that I am today. I also like to thank Guardian Belikov, or as I like to call him, Comrade, because if he hadn't given up some of his time to train me when I came back to the academy, I wouldn't even be half as awesome as I am now." that earned a few snickers from the crowd. "He's taught me many things in the short time that I've known him, so I'm very thankful. I'd like to thank all of my friends for always being there for me, for helping to mold me into who I am.

"It may sound corny to say this, but I'm gonna say it anyway. This truly is the first day of the rest of our lives. It's a time of new beginnings, outside of these iron gates. It's time to make something of yourself. It's time to live and start anew.

"There's a lot of things I could say, some very sappy, but I think that a simple 'we rock' will suffice. Because it's true, every one of us here really do rock.

"I hope that all of you have enjoyed your time here at St. Vladimir's Academy as much as I have. My life has been great here, even with all the trouble that I've gotten myself into, mostly in Guardian Alto's classroom." lots of people laughed at that. "Thank you all, and I'll miss everyone here dearly. Espescially you, Kirova." I looked her in the eyes, and it looked like she was holding back tears. She was smiling at me too. Weird! "Thank you." loud cheers erupted from all around me as I handed the microphone back to Alberta and gave her and Kirova hugs and walked off the stage. I, as well as the other novices, would be recieving my promise mark in an hour. I continued to wait as the rest of the dhampirs were called up to get their diplomas.

Alberta spoke into the microphone. "We, here at St. Vladimir's Academy, wish you all luck as you begin your new lives." as soon as she finished, there was a sea of white and red as the students sent their graduation caps flying into the air.

I ran over to Lissa.

"Oh Rose, can you believe it? We're actually done! You were so amazing up there, it was awesome!" she babbled excitedly.

"Thanks, Liss. And I can't believe it either. Prom later tonight is gonna be so fun!"

"I know! Are you gonna wear the dress you're wearing now?"

I thought about that. I didn't really have anything else that would be suitable for the prom. "Yeah, I guess. I don't really have many dresses."

I could feel that Lissa was hiding something through the bond. "Well, good thing I got one for you!"

My mouth flew open with a pop. "You got me a prom dress?"

She nodded excitedly. "It's in my room. Come over after your promise mark ceremony and we'll get ready."

"Okay, let's go find my parents and our friends." In the past two months, mom has switched to guarding Abe so they've been around a lot, and they've become like parents to Lissa. We weaved through the crowd, trying to find them. I spotted Dimitri's tall frame, so we headed towards him.

He pulled me into a tight hug. "Oh Roza, I'm so proud of you! You did so good up there."

"Thanks Comrade!" then I was handed off to my mom and Abe. Mom was crying, and Abe had the biggest smile I've ever seen plastered on his face.

"Kiz, you did good. Your mother and I are so very proud of you!"

"Thanks dad!"

"We love you very much, Rose." my mother said through the tears.

"Aww don't cry, I love you guys too. Now come on, I've gotta get changed and go to the promise mark ceremony. I can't wait to find out if I'm gonna be guarding Lissa!" I squealed. I texted Lissa who was off trying to find our friends.

hey. im going 2 get changed 4 the ceremony. c u later and tell the guys im proud of them.

will do. c ya rose.

c ya liss.

I headed back to my room, Dimitri walking beside me. He was going to help me pick something sensible to wear to get my mark in.

As soon as I closed my door behind me, Dimitri's lips were on mine. It was warm, smoldering . . . wonderful.

We pulled away. "So Comrade, you gonna be my prom date?"

"Of course, my Roza. I couldn't let you go alone, could I?" he raised an eyebrow.

I swore. "Damn."

He looked puzzled. "What is it?"

"It seems like everyone in the world can raise one eyebrow but me!"

He burst into laughter.

I smacked him on the head. "It's soo not funny, Mr. Belikov."

"Yes it is, Ms. Hathaway. I can teach you sometime if you want me to."

"Would you really?"

"I'd do anything for you, Roza."

"Thanks Dimi!"

"No problem Rosie!"

"I'm gonna forget you even called me that. Now I really need to get changed."

"Wear something that won't cover your neck, and a nice pair of jeans. Oh and put your hair in a bun."

I walked into my bathroom with the clothes I picked. I found a black strapless top that looked really good on me, some dark wash jeans, some black flats and then I put my hair in a bun, securing any pieces that didn't go up with a hairpin.

I walked out. "How do I look?"

"Beautiful. Let's go, you don't want to be late."

I nodded and we walked to the Guardian's building, where the ceremony would take place.

I got in line with the other novices, in alphabetical order of course. They would announce our scores from the trials while we got our marks, then right after they would announce our new charge.

I waited patiently. Eddie was called up, and they read his scores. He did amazing! Maybe even as good as me.

Alberta spoke. "Edison Castile's new charge will be . . . Vasilisa Dragomir." This is amazing! Eddie was going to be my guarding partner!

I waited again for them to call my name. "Rose Hathaway."

I walked up and sat in the chair, tilting my head forward to give the tattoo artist good access to my neck. They read my scores, and I had the best out of everyone. Eddie came pretty close though.

The needle hurt, but I was getting used to it. I'd probably be getting lots more tattoos in the future, so I can't go whining about it.

Alberta spoke again. "Rose Hathaway's new charge will be . . . Vasilisa Dragomir." I started jumping up and down, not caring that I was probably embarassing myself in front of everyone. I was Lissa's guardian. That was all that mattered.

As they rest of the ceremony went by, no one was assigned to Christian. But when Alberta spoke again, I was really surprised.

"Christian Ozera was the only Moroi who didn't recieve a guardian that graduated today, and that is because his new guardian is Guardian Belikov."

I swear that my jaw hit the floor. Lissa and Christian were just as surprised as I was.

As soon as the ceremony was over, I ran straight to Lissa, Christian and Dimitri.

I grabbed Lissa's hands and we started jumping up and down like two year olds. When we stopped, I turned to Dimitri.

"I can't believe it Comrade! How did you manage this?"

"Well, I put in a request to be his guardian because then everything would work out fine. I've known for a while, probably a month."

I grabbed his head and pulled his lips to mine. "You are amazing." I said when we broke away from eachother.

Then I heard another voice. "Christian! I'm so proud of you!" it was his aunt, Tasha Ozera. I really liked Tasha, even though at one point I didn't because she wanted Dimitri to be her guardian. But that was way past us now.

"Aunt Tasha! Did you hear that Dimitri is my new guardian?"

"Yes, I came in time to hear that." she turned to Dimitri and I. Dimitri had his arms wrapped around me.

"Hello Rose, Dimitri." she greeted us.

"Hey Tasha." we said in unison, which made me laugh. Mom and Abe found us in the crowd then.

"Tasha," I began, "I'd like you to meet my father."

She extended her hand. "Hello, I'm Christian's Aunt Tasha."

Dad shook her hand. "I'm Abe Mazur."

"It's very nice to meet you. You and Rose are very alike."

"Sorry to interrupt, but Lissa and I have to go get ready for the prom." I said.

Lissa turned to me. "Guess what?"

"What?" I asked.

"I flew Mia in from court and she's coming to prom! She's probably waiting outside my room right now!"

"Are you serious?" I squealed.

"Yes!"

"OMFG that's awesome!"

"Come on! Let's go!"

We walked over to Lissa's room, leaving Dimitri and Christian to get ready by themselves. We turned the corner and were greeted by a very excited Mia standing outside the room.

"LISSA! ROSE! OMG I'M SO HAPPY TO SEE YOU GUYS!" she sqealed.

We enveloped her in a group hug. "We're so happy to see you too!" we said said together.

"I'm so glad I could come here for prom!" Mia said as soon as we'd calmed down a little.

"What does your dress look like?" I asked her.

"I don't know . . . Lissa won't tell me."

I turned to Lissa. "You bought both of our dresses? You're not going to have any money left if you keep up the spending."

She waved her hand dismissively. "Well, whatever. You'll forget about money when you see your dress." and with that, she opened the door to reveal three white garment bags, with our names on them.

I walked over to the bag that was labeled, "Rose" and unzipped it, revealing a magenta floor-length gown. The dress was strapless, and it had gemstones covering the bodice and continuing to the bottom of the dress in a delicate pattern.

"OMG LISSA I LOVE YOU! THIS DRESS IS ABSOLUTELY PERFECT!" I screamed, my face pulled up into a huge smile.

"I knew you would!" Lissa replied. I looked over to Mia, who was just staring at her dress, completely speechless. She had every reason to be speechless, though, because it was a beautiful floor-length sky blue dress, with little jeweled spaghetti straps.. It had a black ribbon on the waist, which would be tied into a bow on the front.

I spoke to her. "Mia, Eddie is going to be drooling over you tonight."

"I know!" she squealed. "Liss, show us your dress."

Lissa unzipped the bag that her dress was in, and it was a gorgeous lavender colored floor-length dress. It had ruffles going down the skirt and a halter neck.

"Liss, that is going to look perfect on you!" I told her. Then I thought of something. "You told thte guys what color corsages to get for us, right?"

She nodded. "All taken care of. A lavender rose for me, a pink one for you and a white one for Mia."

"And their ties match our dresses?" Mia asked.

"Yep."

This was going to be quite funny. Big, bad Dimitri Belikov wearing a magenta tie. I was going to be taking a **lot** of pictures tonight.

We got to work on making ourselves beautiful. Lissa and I removed the nail polish from our nails so we could paint them to match our dresses for tonight. We painted Mia's blue for her, then we started on our hair. We re-curled my hair so it would look fresh for the dance, and pulled it half back so that my neck was covered. I didn't really want the ugly white bandage to show. We bumped it up, and it looked really nice. We added little pins that had gemstones on the ends to match my dress. With Lissa's hair, we swapped out the pink flowers for lavender ones, straightened her bangs and then her hair was done. For Mia, we completely curled her hair other than her bangs, then french braided her bangs and pinned them to the side. We moved on to makeup after that. We removed whatever we had on our faces, we got to work. Lissa put dark pink and black eye shadow on my eyes, half pink half black, some black eyeliner and mascara. I put some cover up and foundation on by myself. I finished it off with some pink lemonade flavored clear lip gloss. On Mia, we put some white and black eye shadow on her eyes, some black eyeliner and mascara. She also did her own cover up, foundation and lip gloss. On Lissa, we did some light purple eye shadow, black eyeliner and mascara. She did her own cover up, foundation and lip gloss. We then proceeded to very, very carefully slip our dresses on so that we wouldn't tear them.

All of the preparation took us two hours, and we had a half hour before the prom. We were doing last minute touch-ups when there were knocks at the door. Lissa walked over to open it.

The first thing I heard was Christian. "Wow Liss . . . you look amazing."

She blushed. "Thanks, Christian. You look handsome."

I walked over. "Ha, Sparky's wearing purple!"

He scowled at me. "Lissa made me wear it." He, along with Dimitri and Eddie, walked into the room.

"Oh, stop being such a baby." Lissa said.

When Dimitri's eyes landed on me, they widened considerably.

"See something you like, Comrade?" I asked him, waggling my eyebrows.

He nodded slowly, not taking his eyes off of me. "You look absolutely breathtaking, Roza."

"I could say the same for you, Pinky." I replied. Mia and Eddie were in the corner talking, and Mia was blushing while looking down at the floor. Eddie reached his hand up to tip her chin up and kiss her. It was so sweet! I took this time to slip my shoes on, which were just the ones that I wore earlier. Lissa slipped on some silver heels, and Mia grabbed the black heels that Lissa got for her.

It was silent for a few moments, until Christian spoke. "Now, let's get this party started!"

We all nodded, and Dimitri slipped my corsage onto my wrist. Eddie and Christian followed suit, and we walked through the door. I linked my arm through Dimitri's, and we headed off to what would be our last night at St. Vladimir's Academy.

**Okay, I'm leaving something up to you guys.**

**Should I write a short prom scene and post it as a one shot?**

**Review and let me know what you think.**

**I want to get to 90-100 reviews before another update, and I mean it this time.**

**:D :D :D :D :D :D :D Isn't caffeine great?**

**Oh, don't forget to check out my poll! It's open until friday :)**


	11. Prom

**A/N: Okay, so here is my little prom chapter. Purely fun, minimal drama :)**

**Random: Okay, I'm a complete VA nerd. I love Dimitri more than Adrian, but Adrian is hilarious. So hilarious, that I felt the need to make my voicemail message the same as his. So yes, I'm a super VA nerd and I'm proud of it. 8-)**

**Disclaimer: Same as always, the usual 'I own nothing' and so on. So I'm not gonna write the whole thing.**

-Sarah

**PROM**

Prom, summed up in one word: AMAZING.

Prom was really fun, and the best part of the night was having Dimitri by my side.

***FLASHBACK***

We walked through the archway, but not before getting a picture taken with our date. For my picture with Dimitri, I had my head resting on his chest and his arms were wrapped around me, both of us smiling brightly.

We walked inside, where the music was blasting. The song that was playing was "Take it off" by Ke$ha. Liss, Mia and myself immediately started dancing. I looked at Dimitri, who was looking quite awkward.

"Come on Comrade! Dance!" I said, nudging him.

"I don't know . . ." he looked uncertain.

"Loosen up! Get that stick out of your ass!" I grabbed his wrists and forced him to move. He wasn't being very co-operative.

"Roza, I'm really not very comfortable with this . . ."

"It's really easy. Just move your arms and legs around." he started to awkwardly try to dance, and it just looked like he was flailing around. I tried to guide him with my movements, showing him what to do. He started to finally get it, after a few songs. Then a slow song came on. It was 'Good to you' by Marianas Trench.

"I love this song!" I squealed. I put my hand on Dimitri's upper back, and his was just above my butt. I leaned against his chest, as we slow-danced to the song.

_Everyone's around, no words are coming out  
__I can't find my breath, can we just say the rest with no sound  
__And I know this isn't enough, I still don't measure up  
__I'm not prepared, sorry is never there when you need it . . .  
__  
And now I do want you to know  
__I'll hold you up above everyone  
__And I do want you to know  
__I think you'd be good to me  
__And I'd be so good to you  
__I would_

_I thought I saw a sign, somewhere between the lines  
__Maybe it's me, maybe I only see what I want  
__Or I still have your letters, just got caught between  
__Someone I just invented, who I really am  
__And who I've become_

_And I do want you to know  
__I'll hold you up above everyone  
__And I do want you to know  
__I think you'd be good to me  
__And I'd be so good to you_

_Whoa, whoa, whoa  
__I can't be without you  
__Whoa, whoa, whoa  
__Yeah . . .  
__I would_

_And I do want you to know  
__I'll hold you up above everyone  
__And I do want you to know  
__I think you'd be good to me  
__And I be so good to you_

_I'd be good to you  
__I'd be good to you  
__I'd be good to you  
__I'd be so good to you  
__I'd be good to you  
__I'd be good to you  
__I'd be good to you  
__I'd be so good to you_

When the song finished, Dimitri tilted my head up and kissed me.

"I love you, Roza. I always have and I always will."

"I love you too, Dimitri. I can't wait to go to Baia with you tomorrow."

"I can't wait either. You'll love it there!"

"I hope so." then, 'Like a G6' by Far East Movement came on. I instantly started dancing, urging Dimitri to dance with me. He started to dance, and he looked more comfortable than he did before. I was filled with joy; he was finally breaking out of his shell.

_Poppin' bottles in the ice  
__Like a blizzard  
__When we drink we do it right  
__Gettin' slizzard  
__Sippin' sizzurp in my ride  
__Like three-6  
__Now I'm feeling so fly_

_Like a G6  
__Like a G6  
__Like a G6  
__Now now now now now I'm feeling so fly like a G6  
__Like a G6  
__Like a G6  
__Now now now now now I'm feeling so fly like a G6_

I shook my hips, and Lissa and I were making funny faces at eachother while we danced. Dimitri just chuckled at us; Christian soon joined us.

Soon, another slow song came on. It was 'Your Guardian Angel' by Red Jumpsuit Apparatus. Dimitri and I got back in the same stances as before as we slowly rocked from side to side.

_When I see your smile  
__Tears run down my face  
__I can't replace  
__And now that I'm strong I have figured out  
__How this world turns cold  
__And it breaks through my soul  
__And I know I'll find  
__Deep inside me  
__I can be the one_

_I will never let you fall  
I'll stand up with you forever  
I'll be there for you through it all  
Even if saving you sends me to heaven_

_It's okay  
__It's okay  
__It's okay_

_Seasons are changing  
__And waves are crashing  
__And stars are falling all for us  
__Days grow longer  
__And nights grow shorter  
__I can show you  
__I'll be the one_

_I will never let you fall  
__I'll stand up with you forever  
__I'll be there for you through it all  
__Even if saving you sends me to heaven_

_Cause you're my  
__Your my, my  
__My true love  
__My whole heart  
__Please don't throw that away_

_Cause I'll be there  
__For you  
__Please don't walk away  
__And please tell me you'll stay  
__Whoa, stay, whoa_

_Use me as you will  
__Pull my strings just for a thrill  
__And I know I'll be okay  
__Though my skies are turning grey_

_I will never let you fall  
__I'll stand up with you forever  
__I'll be there for you through it all  
__Even if saving you sends me to heaven_

_I will never let you fall  
__I'll stand up with you forever  
__I'll be there for you through it all  
__Even if saving you sends me to heaven_

The whole time the song played, Dimitri sang along softly in my ear. It made me want to cry; he had such a beautiful voice and it was such a beautiful song. I couldn't help it. A lone tear slid down my face.

Dimitri was alarmed. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." I replied.

He didn't look convinced.

"Really, I'm fine. It's just that that was so . . . beautiful. You have a beautiful voice, Comrade. You should sing for me more often."

"I'd sing for you forever if it made you happy."

"Maybe I'll sing for you sometime."

"I'd like that." he said, smiling at me.

The next song that played was 'Dynamite' by Taio Cruz. I started dancing to the beat and singing along at the top of my lungs. Dimitri just laughed.

"Hey Comrade, you should definitely go and get me a drink of punch."

"Sure, Roza. I'll be right back."

**Dimitri POV**

I walked towards the table with the drinks and snacks. They had mini sandwiches, fruits, cake, pop, punch, water, and a giant chocolate fountain in the middle of the table. I can just imagine Roza's face when she sees it. She'll go ballistic!

The punch bowl was right in front of the chocolate fountain. I grabbed a glass and began pouring some punch in.

**(A/N: this part is for BeccaMariaRayne-VampireLover :P)**

Just as I was about to finish filling the cup, the snack table exploded! The chocolate fountain flew right into me, and I was covered from head to toe in the brown liquid. _Shit._

"Oh God! Dimitri, you're a mess!" Rose squealed.

"Really? I never noticed." I said sarcastically.

Rose came up and grabbed my arm. "Come on, let's get you cleaned up."

I let her drag me off the dancefloor and into a nearby bathroom. She grabbed some paper towel, wet it, and started wiping off the front of my tux. She looked at my face in the light and started laughing.

"What's so funny about this?"

She cracked up even more. "Your face just looks so funny!"

"Thanks. I appreciate it."

"Aww, Dimi, don't be mad. You know that I love you anyway, even if you're covered in chocolate. If anything, that's a bonus!"

"How is it a bonus?"

"Because then I can do this." she started to kiss my face, effectively removing the chocolate. "Mmmm you taste yummy. You're like a giant chocolate bunny. I guess I get my easter present early." then she pressed her lips to mine. When she was done, she pulled away and had chocolate all over her face. Now it was my turn to laugh at her.

"What?" she asked, clearly bewildered.

"Now you have chocolate all over your face!"

"Shit. Lissa's gonna kill me for messing up my makeup!" just then her phone went off. Lissa was calling her.

"I'm in the bathroom. Yea, it was Dimitri that the chocolate fountain exploded on. I'm cleaning him up. I don't know who did it, but I'm gonna find out. No, I think I'm gonna leave because there isn't much that I can do for his suit. Yea, he's completely covered. Okay, I'll meet you outside the dancefloor. Bye Liss." she pressed end.

"I'm guessing that Lissa wants to assess the damage?"

"Yep." she replied, popping the p.

"Then let's go." I held out my arm, and she linked hers with mine. We walked out of the bathroom and passed some snickering students. Rose sent them the death glare, and they quickly scurried away. We saw Lissa, Christian, Eddie and Mia standing outside.

"Wow, that must've sucked." Christian commented.

"It did." _other than the part of the bathroom,_ I silently added.

"What happened to your face Rose? The chocolate didn't explode on you too, did it?" Eddie asked her.

"Well, I was cleaning his face off and it got on my face."

"Oh Rose, leave it to you." Lissa said.

"Yeah . . . well Dimitri and I are leaving, we have to get cleaned up. Call me later, Liss." Lissa nodded, and Rose grabbed my arm and started to pull me towards the dhampir dorms.

"Roza, wait. I at least need something to change into." she nodded and we turned to go to my room. I quickly gathered some pajama bottoms and some clothes for tomorrow and stuffed them into a small overnight bag. We left and headed to her room.

Once her door was closed, her lips were on mine with a sudden urgency. I groaned as her tongue slid in my mouth. I lifted her up and she wrapped her legs around my waist.

I spent that night in a cloud of pure bliss.

**So, how was it?**

**I'm really sorry that it took me so long to finish, it's just that for one, I've been grounded and two, even though I know that I shouldn't when I have such a hard time with the stories that I have, I had a dream about VA and I couldn't resist starting to write. I won't post it until either this or Last Sacrifice is finished, but I will post a summary in an author's note soon. If you want to know the general theme of it, pm me and I'll tell you a bit about it.**

**So, review and tell me what you thought. I want to get to at least 100 before I update again :D**

**Vote on my poll! Tomorrow is the last day!**


	12. Chapter 11

**A/N: I know it's been a while, that's why I made this chapter extra long :D It took a while (and my new Russian skills) to write, so I hope it's good and that there's no mistakes. I hope you all enjoy this chapter :) Also, please please please check out my new story, Twists and Turns!**

**Disclaimer: Me- Dimitri, could you please do the disclaimer?**

**Dimitri- Why can't you?**

**Me- Because it sounds better coming from you.**

**Dimitri- *sighs* Sarah does not own any of the VA characters, including me.**

**Me- Thanks Dimitri!**

**Dimitri- *grumbles* Yeah. Whatever.**

**

* * *

****CHAPTER ELEVEN**

This is it. The day I travel to Russia with Dimitri and finally meet his family. I was eager to finally meet them face to face, rather than talk to them over the phone.

Dimitri made it so that we'd land in St. Petersburg so we could explore, then we would take a short flight to Omsk and drive to Baia. I was freaking out when he told me about St. Petersburg. Even though I make fun of him, I honestly want to go and see the sights while he explains everything to me. I want to go to a restaurant and have no clue what to say, just to hear him speak in Russian. Hearing him speak in his native tongue sent shivers down my spine; I loved it. His voice was so deep and rich, and especially beautiful when used to speak in Russian.

I ready at dawn; our flight was for 6 am, and it took at least a day to fly to Russia, then there's St. Petersburg, then our other flight to Omsk and the drive to Baia. We wanted to arrive at his home at a decent time.

Just as I was zippering up my suitcase, I heard knocking at my door.

"Come in!" I called. "The door is open."

"Hello, Roza. Are you ready?" Dimitri's beautifully accented voice asked.

"Yes, if I could just get this stupid suitcase zippered!" It was starting to frustrate me. I always seem to pack too much, but it's stuff that I need so I can't really take anything out.

I felt a warm hand cover mine. "Let me try."

I nodded and released the zipper. He placed his left hand over the top of the suitcase and pressed down on it, and zippered it up with his right.

"Thanks, Comrade."

"No problem, Roza. Now come on, we have to get to the airport." We were flying out of a public airport, rather than the academy's airstrip. We couldn't really take a private jet.

"I just need to say goodbye to Lissa and the gang."

He nodded, and I left my academy dorm room for the last time. While Dimitri and I would be in Russia, Lissa would be packing up my things to ship them to the Royal Court. I was a little sad to be leaving my room behind, since it's been my home ever since I was a small child. So many great memories were made in there. With one last look around it, I closed the door and headed to the gates where my friends would be waiting to say goodbye. We walked in silence, other than when Dimitri continuously insisted that he took my suitcase. He finally shut up when I threatened to kick him in the crotch.

When we arrived, I saw Lissa's tear-streaked face. She was already babbling before I was in earshot ". . . call everyday. I want to know everything that happens! Oh God, I'm gonna miss you so much! I don't know what I'll do without you!" I set my suitcase on the ground and pulled her into a hug.

"Ditto, Liss. This is going to be the longest amount of time that we won't see eachother!"

"I know . . . Rose, be safe. You need to be careful with what you do or I'll go crazy with worry. Okay?"

"Don't worry about me, Liss. I can handle myself, plus I have a big, bad Russian with me. I'll be fine."

She turned to Dimitri. "You, sir, better take extremely good care of her. You know how reckless she gets. Don't let her to anything stupid."

"I won't, Lissa. She's safe with me. I'd never, ever, let anything happen to her."

"Good." She walked over to Christian.

"So, Sparky, you gonna miss me?" I asked.

"Oh Rose, how can I go on without you? I'll be in misery without you." he joked.

"Oh Christian, I know. My life will be bleak without you, my ray of sunshine." Everyone began to laugh, and I walked up to hug him. Oh man, I wasn't going soft, was I?

I whispered in his ear. "Watch out for her, Christian. Don't let her use too much magic. I know that she'll be safe with you to look after her."

"Don't worry about it; I'd protect her with my life."

"Good. Bye, Christian. Stay safe."

"Bye, Rosie-Posie." I gritted my teeth at that one and sent him a murderous glare. He just laughed, then mussed my hair. The look on my face must've been terrifying, because he took off running.

"I'll get you, Ozera. Just wait until I get back and you'll see what I have in store for you!" I already had a plan forming in my head. If possible, he ran even faster.

"Ah, little dhampir, I'll miss your charm. Have fun." Adrian said, pulling me into a tight hug.

"I'll miss you too, Adrian."

Before he released me, he whispered in my ear. "I'll monitor your dreams, if you want me to." He'd been looking out for my dreams ever since I had that horrible nightmare.

I nodded. "Thanks, Adrian."

"No problem."

Then Mia and Eddie walked over. "We have to hang out when you get to court!" Mia exclaimed.

"We will. I'm gonna miss you guys."

"We'll miss you too, Rose. Have a good trip." said Eddie.

"I will. Take good care of Lissa or I'll chop your balls off."

He looked scared. "Don't worry, I'll take extremely good care of her."

"Good. We gotta go, our flight leaves soon. I'll miss all of you so much." Tears threatened to fall, because these people were my family. But I kept the tears in, and gave everyone one last hug. We got in the car, and heard a chorus of 'Bye Rose, bye Dimitri' as we drove through the iron gates of my home.

* * *

"Dimitriiiiiiiii!" I whined. "How long is this stupid damn flight?" We'd only been in the air for two hours, but it felt like forever.

"Roza, we still have almost a day left of flight time. Why don't you take a nap, or listen to music? You could even go on the laptop and talk to Lissa if you wanted to." he suggested. Hmm, sleep? Or talk to Lissa? I checked the bond, and Lissa was on Facebook. I might as well talk to her.

"Ok, hand me the laptop." He nodded and grabbed it out of the overhead compartment. I turned it on and logged on to my Facebook, clicking on Lissa's name so that I could talk to her. Dimitri had been teaching me a few Russian phrases, so I decided to put them to use.

Privyet, Lissa. (Hi, Lissa.)

Privyet, Rose. (Hi, Rose.)

Right. I forgot that she took Russian in school. Oh well.

Kak dyela? (How are you?)

Horoshioy, kak oo vas dyela? (Good-I think-, how about you?)

Dovolno nadoyevshioy . . . ryeoys dlinno. Switch to english, I don't feel like speaking Russian anymore. (Pretty bored-I think- . . . it's a long flight.)

That's a lot that you've learned, Rose. You're pretty good :)

Thanks, Liss. Dimitri has been teaching me for the past two hours how to speak a bit of Russian . . . yawn

Well it comes in handy since you're going to Russia.

I know, but still. It's pretty boring, and I bet he's still going to teach me more . . .

Well, hang in there. It's good to learn this stuff. You seem to be picking it up pretty fast.

Yeah, it helps when your teacher is as awesome as Dimitri :D

LOL I guess . . . Here, Christian wants to talk to you.

Does he know Russian?

No.

This should be fun.

Don't say anything too mean. Remember, I can understand so I know what you say to him.

Don't worry, Liss. But really, you know I will.

Yeah, whatever. Here he is.

K.

Hey Rosie! How's the flight?

Pretty good, how's the academy?

Good. We're trying to lug all of your crap out of your room. We found your diary, and there was some funny stuff in there. Dear Diary, Dimitri is sooooooo hot! Today in practice, we kissed and OMG he's such a good kisser!

I. Am. Going. To. Kill. You. Oobludok! (Bastard)

What does that mean?

I'm not telling you. Don't even bother asking Lissa. Oh and, poighditye k chyertoo! (Go to hell)

You're annoying.

I could say the same about you.

Ass.

Zadnitsa. (Ass)

Argh! Stop it!

Nope. This is too fun :D

Bitch :(

Trahnitye vas. (Fuck you)

That's it! Here's Lissa back, I don't wanna talk to you anymore :(

See ya Sparky :D

Bye asshole.

Tee hee :)

Hey Rose, I'm back. You're so mean, but I have to admit that that was pretty hilarious. Horoshi! (Nice one! I think :S)

Ya znau! I'm amazing :) (I know)

Well I better go, like Christian said, we're clearing out your room.

See ya Liss. Oh, don't let Christian see anything else thats private.

Okay. Paka, Rose. (Bye)

Do svidaniya. (Goodbye)

I logged off and shut the laptop.

"Very nice use of Russian, Roza. You're getting good!" Dimitri praised me.

"Well you're an amazing teacher, Comrade. I learned from the best. And how do you know what I wrote? Were you looking?"

"I might have peeked a little . . ."

"Dimitri! Not cool! Zadnitsa . . ."

"Aww, you don't mean that. You know you love me, Roza."

He looked at me with puppy dog eyes. I wanted to be mad, but I couldn't. "Fine, all is forgiven. I'm gonna get some sleep now, how about you?"

"Yeah, sleep sounds good. Since we didn't get very much of that last night." Ah, last night. Now that was great.

"Yeah . . . Ya tyebya lublu, Dimitri." I said. (I love you)

"Ya lublu vas takzhe, Roza." He opened his arms for me, and I gratefully snuggled up to his warm chest. He rested his head on the chair, and I fell asleep, hoping to sleep until we got to St. Petersburg. (I love you too)

* * *

I was woken up by quiet murmuring in my ear.

"Wake up, sweetheart. We're here."

"What? We're here?" I asked groggily.

He chuckled at me. "Yes, Roza. We're landing in St. Petersburg in ten minutes."

I immediately became alert. "Really?"

"Really."

"Oh my God I'm so excited!"

"Me too, Roza. Me too." There was a twinkle in his eyes that I'd never seen. His family meant a lot to him, so naturally he'd be excited. I started gathering my things and stuffing them into my purse. We buckled up and prepared to land. I sat bouncing in my seat and counted down the minutes until we landed.

_One minute . . ._

_Two minutes . . ._

_Three minutes . . . _

_Four minutes . . ._

_Five minutes . . ._

_Six minutes . . ._

_Seven minutes . . ._

_Eight minutes . . ._

_Nine minutes . . ._

_Ten minutes . . ._

I was jolted as the plane touched the ground. We soon exited the plane, and made our way to the baggage claim. We grabbed our bags and got into a taxi, headed towards The Winter Palace.

When we pulled up in front of it, it took my breath away. The Winter Palace was absolutely _huge_! It was back from when Russia was ruled by czars, and it was just so beautiful. We went on a tour, and the inside was even more beautiful than the outside.

Once we left there, we headed to Saint Isaac's Cathedral. It was so beautiful, with it's strange onion shaped domes. It was the largest Russian Orthodox church in the city, and the tallest Easter Orthodox church upon completion. Dimitri looked so happy to be here. He pointed everything out and explained stuff about them, and you could tell that he was really enjoying himself.

We decided to get some food at a nearby restaurant. My Russian skills weren't good enough to order food, so Dimitri did it for me. He ordered some pelmeni for me, which are pastry dumplings that are filled with meatballs. He ordered some pirozkhis for himself, which are little pastries that can be filled with potatoes, cheese, cabbage or meat. He got ones that had cheese, potatoes and ham in them. We ordered sodas and ate in silence, probably because I was too busy stuffing my face to keep any type of conversation going.

When we finished, we paid and got a cab to take us to the airport for our flight to Omsk. It would be a short flight; probably two or three hours. I decided to listen to music this time, and Dimitri read one of his beloved western novels.

I went through my playlist, trying to find a good song. I finally settled on Angels Cry by The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus.

_Well it's hard to explain  
But I'll try if you let me  
Well it is hard to sustain  
I'll cry if you let me  
This doesn't change the way I feel about you  
Or your place in my life  
(please don't cry)  
Can't you see I'm dying here?  
A shot of broken heart that's chased with fear_

The angels cry when stars collide  
I can't eat and I can't breathe  
I wouldn't want it any other way

Intentions that were pure have turned obscure  
Seconds into hours  
Minutes into years  
Don't ask me why  
(please don't cry)  
I cant tell you lies

The angels cry when stars collide  
I can't eat and I can't breathe  
I wouldn't want it any other way.

_The angels cry when stars collide  
I can't eat and I can't breathe  
I wouldn't want it any other way._

My heart burns through  
My chest to the floor  
Tearing me silently although abruptly  
Words cant hide as I'm taking you home  
And I tried to see  
Tried to understand your words as I'm taking you home

The angels cry when stars collide  
I can't eat and I can't breathe  
I wouldn't want it any other way

_The angels cry when stars collide  
I can't eat and I can't breathe  
I wouldn't want it any other way_

The next song was my personal favorite, Your Guardian Angel. Of course, I liked it better when Dimitri sang it to me, but I still love it even when he doesn't.

(**A/N: The lyrics are in the previous chapter.**)

After that, I went through my list until I found my Paramore songs. I picked The Only Exception, because it's such a pretty sounding song.

_When I was younger  
I saw my daddy cry  
And curse at the wind  
He broke his own heart  
And I watched  
As he tried to reassemble it_

And my momma swore that  
She would never let herself forget  
And that was the day that I promised  
I'd never sing of love  
If it does not exist

But darling,  
You, are, the only exception  
You, are, the only exception  
You, are, the only exception  
You, are, the only exception

Maybe I know, somewhere  
Deep in my soul  
That love never lasts  
And we've got to find other ways  
To make it alone  
Keep a straight face

And I've always lived like this  
Keeping a comfortable, distance  
And up until now  
I had sworn to myself that I'm  
Content with loneliness  
Because none of it was ever worth the risk

Well, You, are, the only exception  
You, are, the only exception  
You, are, the only exception  
You, are, the only exception

I've got a tight grip on reality  
But I can't  
Let go of what's in front of me here  
I know you're leaving  
In the morning, when you wake up  
Leave me with some kind of proof it's not a dream

Ohh-

You, are, the only exception  
You, are, the only exception  
You, are, the only exception  
You, are, the only exception  
You, are, the only exception  
You, are, the only exception  
You, are, the only exception  
You, are, the only exception

And I'm on my way to believing  
Oh, And I'm on my way to believing

Next, I picked something more upbeat. I picked Commander, by Kelly Rowland. I listened to music for a bit, then decided to take a quick nap before I would meet Dimitri's family.

* * *

I woke up to Dimitri gently shaking me.

"Are we here?" I asked.

"Yes, we're here. Come, we have to drive to Baia." I nodded and gathered my stuff to exit the plane. We rented a car and drove to Baia, listening to Dimitri's crap music the whole way there.

"God, what is this crap?" I asked.

"Music."

"Well it sucks."

"Well you have to listen to it for another hour, so you might as well get used to it."

"Oobludok." I muttered.

"Love you too, Rosie."

"You did not just call me Rosie."

"I think I did."

"I hate you."

"I know you don't. You would never hate me."

"Trahnitye vas!"

"I regret teaching you how to swear."

"Too bad! It's too late now."

"Whatever. If you don't like this music, then why don't you just listen to your iPod?"

"Because, I'd rather torment you."

"Oh Roza, I love you but you're so infuriating!"

"It's part of the job description."

"Why don't you read? I'm sure that you have something to read."

He was right. I had just bought a new book. It was a vampire book, because I like to make fun of what the humans think we would be like. The book I had bought was called 'Blue Bloods', and after reading the first few chapters, I found myself getting hooked into the story. I already hated Mimi, but I loved her twin brother, Jack. Schuyler was pretty cool, and Bliss too. Oliver is probably my favorite character, though. I don't really know why. I pulled it out of my bag and began to read.

Before I knew it, we had pulled up outside a nice little house. I opened the car door and looked around me. So this was Baia. We retrieved our suitcases out of the trunk of the car and walked up to the door. Dimitri reached out and knocked, and we waited about ten seconds before the door flew open, revealing all of the Belikovs. Dimitri and I were tackled by Olena. I'd been practising a greeting; I really hoped that I wouldn't mess it up.

"Privyet, Olena. Nastolko horosho nakonyets vtsryetit vas lichno!" I said. (Hi, Olena. It's so nice to finally meet you in person!)

"Ah, I see you've been practising. It's so nice to finally meet you in person too, Rose." she replied. She stepped aside so that the others could come outside.

A young girl, probably around my age, with brown hair that was streaked with gold approached me. _Viktoria_, I thought.

"Hey Rose! It's so awesome that I finally get to meet you!" she pulled me into a hug. I awkwardly hugged her back.

"It's nice to finally get to meet you too, Viktoria."

"I have a feeling that we'll be great friends, Rose."

I smiled at her. She was so nice! "I'm sure we will be, Vik."

Karolina, the eldest of the Belikov sister, approached me next. "Hello, Rose. How was your flight?"

God, they were all so nice! "Long and boring. I mostly just annoyed Dimitri the whole time, so that kept me pretty occupied."

She laughed. "Yes, it's always fun to annoy Dimka." she looked at him adoringly. The Belikovs all loved eachother so much, it warmed my heart.

Sonya came up to me next. "Hi Rose. It's nice to finally meet the girl that's stolen Dimka's heart."

"It's nice to meet you too, Sonya."

Suddenly, there was a loud shout. "UNCLE DIMKA!" a boy, probably seven or eight, popped out and jumped on Dimitri.

"Hey Paul! Wow, you've gotten big!"

"I know! I'm 4'7" now!"

"Wow! Paul, I'd like you to meet Rose. Rose, this is my nephew, Paul."

I waved to him. "Hi Paul."

"Hi Rose. You're really pretty!"

"Thank you, Paul. You're very handsome." he looked like a mini Dimitri. He was a cutie!

"Is it ok if I call you Aunt Rose?"

"If you want to, sure!"

"Ok Aunt Rose!" Aww, I'm an aunt now! He ran inside. Everyone chuckled at our little exchange.

"Well, come inside. Yeva is waiting." Oh man. I'm actually a little scared to meet Yeva. We picked up our suitcases and stepped inside. Dimitri and I made our way to his room so we could put our suitcases away.

* * *

**I know, weird way to end a chapter. I just couldn't think of another way, and they're going to see Yeva in the next chapter. Remember to check out my new story, Twists and Turns, and REVIEW! I want 120-130 reviews before another update, and even if I get that, don't hesitate to leave more! They make me happy, and happy=more writing!**


	13. Chapter 12

**A/N: I'm so sorry that this took so long. I've been so busy with school, and I'm just finishing with midterms. I've had to study a lot, so I've been writing this chapter in bits and pieces. I hope it's good . . .**

**Don't forget to vote on my poll! It's for this story.**

**OMG HAS ANYONE ELSE READ CITY OF BONES FROM THE MORTAL INSTRUMENTS SERIES? I read it yesterday. I LOVE JACE WAYLAND! I need to buy City of Ashes really soon . . .**

**Disclaimer: I don't own VA or it's characters. I only own my awesome plot :D**

-Sarah

**CHAPTER TWELVE**

Dimitri must've sensed how nervous I was, because when we put our suitcases on the floor, he pulled me into a tight hug, murmuring to me in Russian.

"Should I be afraid of Yeva?" I asked.

He chuckled. "No, Roza. She's a little intimidating, but I'm sure that she'll love you."

"Well then, let's get this show on the road."

He rested his hands on either side of my face. "Really, Rose. Don't worry."

"I won't. I'm fine, really. Let's just go out and meet her."

"Okay." His big hand reached down to hold mine, and we went out to the living room hand in hand.

The whole Belikov family was seated all around the living room. When we walked in, Viktoria waved us over to sit with her on the couch. I sat beside her and Dimitri sat beside to me, still clutching my hand.

"Privyet, Dimka. Kak vas dyela?" A small, frail looking woman said. She was very thin, and looked like she could be blown away by the breeze. Even though she looked frail and thin, her eyes were sharp and piercing. They were the same brown as Dimitri's, like all of the Belikovs had.

"I'm well, Babushka. And you?" Dimitri replied.

Yeva's eyes narrowed in annoyance that he hadn't replied in Russian. "I'm fine, Dimka." Her piercing eyes shifted over to me. "You must be Rose."

"The one and only." I responded, not letting the nervousness leak into my voice.

"Tell me, Rose. Do you truly love my grandson?" she asked.

I was caught off guard by the question. Why would she want to know? "Of course. He's everything to me."

She nodded, and turned to Dimitri. "Dimka. Do you truly love Rose?"

"I do, Babushka. She is the love of my life."

Yeva then did something that I never expected. She smiled warmly at us, a look of approval on her face. "Then I'm happy for both of you. You're perfect for eachother, each balancing the other out." The truth of Yeva's words stunned me. Dimitri and I did balance eachother out; he kept me under control, while I got him to live a little.

I smiled at Yeva. "Thank you, Yeva."

She scoffed. "Call me Babushka, that is, if you'd like to."

I grinned. "I'd like that very much."

Olena chose that moment to speak. "Are you two hungry? Or did you eat before you came?"

"We ate in St. Petersburg, so I think we're good. Right, Roza?" Dimitri said, looking pointedly at me.

"Yeah, I'm good. Kind of tired. Jet lag is stupid." I replied, yawning hugely.

"We can go to bed now, Roza. If you want to." Dimitri suggested.

"Mmmmm . . . sleep sounds good right now."

"I really don't understand how one person can sleep so much. I mean really, you slept basically the whole plane ride to St. Petersburg, and the whole flight to Omsk." Dimitri said, a grin on his face.

I shrugged. "It's a talent."

"Oh, how I do love you, Rose."

"I know you do. Oh, and, I love you too. Just throwing that out there . . ."

Dimitri stood up off the couch, and extended his hand to help me. Once he pulled me up, he leaned down and kissed me, short and sweet.

"Awww!" The Belikov sisters chorused.

A low, throaty chuckle escaped Dimitri's mouth.

"You two have got to be the cutest thing I've ever seen!" Viktoria gushed.

I reached up and pinched Dimitri's cheek. "I know! He's such a cutie . . ." I said, my voice turning into baby talk. Everyone laughed at that. I yawned again, bigger than last time.

"Okay, Sleeping Beauty wants to sleep." Without warning, he swept me up into his arms. A shocked squeak burst through my lips.

"Sleeping Beauty is going to beat the crap out of you if you don't put her down!" I growled menacingly.

Dimitri set me down gently, and I stomped on his foot.

His hands reached down and cradled his now-injured foot. "What was that for?"

"I'm no damsel. You know that."

The rest of the Belikovs watched our exchange with amused expressions.

"I never thought I'd say this, but I think I'm more scared of her than you." Karolina said, giggling.

"Yeah. I think we've finally found someone who could win against him in a fight." Sonya added, grinning at us.

"You two will have to have a fight. I want to see who wins!" Viktoria exclaimed.

"How about tomorrow morning?" I suggested.

"Tomorrow morning sounds perfect. Prepare to lose, Roza." Dimitri replied, his tone of voice challenging me.

"Why would I do that when I'm not the one who will be losing?"

Rolling his eyes, he gestured to the stairs. "Come on, let's go to bed. We'll need to be well rested for tomorrow."

"Sure. And I can walk by my self." With that, I turned and began marching up the stairs, Dimitri following behind me.

I heard the hushed voice of Olena. "I've never seen Dimka so relaxed or carefree! Rose is perfect for him."

"I agree with you, Olena. They bring out the best in eachother." Yeva replied, her voice just as quiet as Olena's.

When we reached the top of the stairs, I could no longer hear the voices of Dimitri's family.

He led me down the hall, and opened a door.

The room was plain and simple, and screamed Dimitri. There were pictures of him as a child scattered around the room, and the walls were a simple light blue.

"I like your room."

"Thank you. I haven't been in here in years . . . It still looks exactly the same."

"I'm going to call Lissa. She'll freak out if I don't."

"Okay. I'm going to go put my pajamas on, I'll be right back."

"Sure." I replied, and he walked out of the room with some pajama bottoms in his hand.

I grabbed my cell phone out of my purse and dialed Lissa's number. It rang a few times, before I heard her pick up.

"Hello?" she sounded out of breath.

"Hey Liss. What's up?"

"Rose! Oh, we're still hauling stuff out of your room. I never knew you had so much!"

I smiled sheepishly, even though she couldn't see it. "Yeah, sorry about that . . ."

"It's okay. So how do you like Baia?"

"Liss, it's beautiful here. Not at all what I expected."

"Yeah, you were expecting some sort of arctic wasteland, weren't you?"

"Yeah, I guess. But I really love it here."

"That's good. How is Dimitri's family?"

"Liss, they are so amazing. I love them already."

"Even Yeva?"

I laughed. "Yes Liss, even Yeva. She was a little scary at the start, but now she insists that I call her Babushka." I paused. "Liss, I feel like I belong. They've already accepted me so well."

"I'm glad that you're happy, Rose. Well, I gotta go. We're gonna get a bit more finished tonight before we go to bed."

"Okay Liss. Tell everyone that I miss them, and I can't wait to see them again."

"I will."

"Night Liss."

"Night Rose." I heard the click, meaning she'd hung up. Sighing, I set my Blackberry on the bed and began to dig through my suitcase for some pajamas.

Warm arms encircled me. "How is Lissa?"

His breath was warm on my neck, and I shivered. "She's good. Still hauling stuff out of my room."

"I don't doubt it. You had too much stuff crammed into that little room."

I turned around to face him. He was wearing only pajama pants, and I saw his muscled chest. His lips were oh-so close, just a little farther . . .

As if reading my thoughts, he leaned closer to me and our lips met. Heat blossomed between us, and he moved to sit on the bed, pulling me down on his lap.

When we broke apart, he sat there and simply held me. I was luxuriating in the scent that was Dimitri, his musky aftershave, his clean-smelling hair . . .

"I think you should get your pajamas on. Unless you want to sleep in your jeans and tank top." Dimitri said after a few moments.

Sighing, I stood up. Grabbing the first pair of pajamas I found, I got changed.

As I was getting changed, Dimitri stared at me with a hungry expression. I knew he liked my body.

Once I was dressed in my comfy blue and yellow Snoopy pajama bottoms and yellow tank top, I crawled into bed with Dimitri. He wrapped his arms around me and I sighed in content.

"Goodnight Dimi." I said sleepily.

"Goodnight Roza." I fell asleep happily, thinking that nothing in the world could go wrong . . .

. . . until I began dreaming.

I was alone in a barren field, the stench of death all around me.

I looked all around me. "Hello?" I called. "Is anyone there? Adrian? Are you here with me?"

No response.

I began to wander aimlessly around the field until I reached the edge of the trees. I had a bad feeling about the forest in front of me, and my brain was screaming at me not to go in there. It was like I couldn't control my feet; they began to move, one in front of the other, until I was no longer in the field.

The forest was dark, and the smell of death intensified. I felt like gagging; it was disgusting.

My feet stopped when I reached a small clearing, and the scene in front of me was sickening.

The bodies of my friends and family were strewn around the open space, all bloody and bruised.

In the middle, stood the blond Strigoi. The one who almost killed Dimitri. I was consumed with an overwhelming rage, and I readied myself to spring.

"Don't move, or your little spirit-using friend dies." he said. He snapped his fingers, and a Strigoi stepped forward, holding Adrian by the throat.

"Adrian." My voice sounded strangled.

"I don't know why, but I can't pull us out. Something's stopping me from doing it!" he cried.

"Shhhh. Calm down. Let's just find out what they want." I said soothingly. I turned to the blond. "What the hell do you want? How are you even here?"

"What I want, my dear, is you and your boyfriend. Galina chewed me out when I didn't return with him. I see you've made a remarkable recovery. And, how I'm here, is irrelevant."

"What do you want with Dimitri and I? And who the hell is Galina?"

"Galina was Belikov's old mentor. She was awakened a few years ago. She wants Dimitri because she knows how powerful he is, and from what I've told her, you're strong too. There isn't one person who hasn't heard of _the_ Rose Hathaway. She wants you too."

This was a lot to process. Dimitri had a mentor who was turned, and now she wants to turn him, and me since she knows how powerful I am. "Well you can tell this Galina chick that she can't have us. Got it?"

"Don't you dare order me around, you stupid little dhampir." he snarled. He was suddenly right in front of me, and he grabbed me by my hair and threw me down. I felt pain in my abdomen, and realized that a sharp rock had punctured the skin.

"You did _not_ just do that." I snarled viciously.

"I do believe that I did." he replied smugly.

"You asshole! You're going to pay for this!" Dark red blood stained my yellow tank top. I dislodged the sharp rock from my skin, and cried out at the pain.

"Sure. You just keep thinking that." He grabbed my head and slammed it down on the hard ground, and I saw stars. I could taste blood in the back of my throat.

"Rose!" Adrian screamed.

"Shut up." The blond snarled. Then he turned back to me. "We will find you. I promise you that." Then he raised his foot and slammed it down on my leg. I felt the bone snap, and I screamed. The then reached down and snapped my arm like a twig. If possible, I screamed even louder. My right side was on fire. After that, he stalked off, but not before punching Adrian in the gut.

After him and the other Strigoi left, my screams turned to whimpers. Adrian walked over to me, clutching his stomach, and sank down on his knees.

"Rose . . ." he whispered.

"Adrian." I croaked. "Adrian, it hurts so bad . . ." I whimpered. He put his hand on my arm that wasn't broken.

"I can try to heal you but . . . I don't know if I'll be able to."

"No . . . don't waste your energy. Is there any way you can get Lissa here?"

"Let me try." He closed his eyes, and I tried to stay quiet. Not really that easy when you're in so much pain.

Minutes later, I saw a shimmering shape appearing a few feet away. The shape turned into Lissa, and when she saw us, her hand flew up to her mouth.

"What happened?" she cried, running to kneel by our sides.

"Strigoi." Adrian replied. ''It's them who are tormenting Rose in her dreams. One broke her right arm and right leg, and he slammed her head into the ground. The worst I got was a punch to the gut."

"Oh Rose . . . what happened to your stomach?" Lissa asked.

"He threw me down and I landed on a really sharp rock." I replied, my voice shaking with my pain.

Adrian spoke again. "Liss, can you heal her? At least her arm and leg?"

"Of course." Gently, she rested her hand on my injured leg. I felt the golden magic bubble up, and then the hot/cold sensation of her healing magic. Once she was done with my leg, she moved to my arm. I once again felt the hot/cold sensation.

She reached for my head, but I reached out and stopped her. "No more. I can't handle any more." It was true. I felt the darkness welling up inside of me, and I barely held it at bay.

Lissa nodded in understanding.

The dream began to shimmer and fade. "You're waking up. Be careful, Rose." Adrian said before the dream faded.

**Dimitri POV**

I was woken up by a bloodcurdling scream.

_Oh no. _I thought. _Not again._

I tried shaking her, but she kept screaming. That's when I noticed the dark red blood seeping out of her left side. I pulled her shirt away from it, and saw a small wound that looked pretty deep.

"Mom!" I screamed. I heard lots of footsteps in the hallway, and then my bedroom door flew open and the light turned on. Standing in the doorway was my mother, my grandmother and all three of my sisters.

"What's wrong?" Mom asked, looking panicky.

"It's Rose. She won't wake up! This can't be happening again!"

"Again? It's happened before?" Viktoria asked.

"Yes! And look at her stomach! Something has been tormenting her in her dreams, and she somehow sustains the injuries from her dreams in the waking world."

When mom saw the wound, she immediately snapped into action. "Karolina, go get the medical supplies. Dimka, try waking her up again. Everyone else, out!" Everyone did as they were told, including me.

"Rose . . . Roza . . . wake up. Come on. You have to." I said, gently shaking her once more. "Goddammit! Where the hell is Ivashkov? Why isn't he getting her out of this?" I yelled to no one in particular. I recieved a puzzled look from my mother, but she said nothing.

Karolina returned with the first aid kit. "Do you want me to stay and help?" she asked.

Mom shook her head. "No, I'll be fine. You had better go check on Paul. He's probably wondering what all the screaming is about, if he's even awake . . ."

Karolina nodded and left the room. Rose's right arm and leg were twisted unnaturally, and I fought the urge to throw up. _They're broken_, a voice in my mind said. I saw dark red blood covering her pillow. _Great, she has a head injury too. What else could go wrong?_

My mother got to work with cleaning the wound in Rose's stomach, then bandaged it. After that, she checked Rose's head. There was a bloody gash on the back of her head, and her hair was matted with blood.

Rose's screams dropped off to whimpers as mom cleaned her head wound.

Once mom was almost done with Rose's head, I stared at her in amazement. I'm sure my mom was doing the same, because Rose's leg and arm were popping back into place. _Lissa._ I thought. But how was Lissa there? She can't dreamwalk like Adrian.

Moments later, Rose's eyes fluttered open. Before she could even speak, I pulled her into a hug. I was so terrified for her.

She began to cry, and I just held her. My mother left the room, so that Rose and I could be alone.

After a few minutes, her crying turned to hiccups. I sensed that she was ready to talk.

"Roza," I began, "what happened? You can tell me."

"It was the blond. It's been him all along. Adrian was there, but he couldn't pull us out. He said that something was stopping him. The blond said that he wanted me and you, because his boss Galina wanted us. They want to turn us! Then he threw me down and I landed on a really sharp rock. He slammed my head into the ground, and then he stomped on my leg and broke it. Then he snapped my arm, and punched Adrian in the gut. Adrian pulled Lissa into the dream with us, and she healed my arm and my leg. I wouldn't let her do anymore, because I can feel the darkness starting to come. Oh Dimitri, I was so scared! Everyone else's bodies were scattered around the clearing it and it was so . . . so . . . horrible."

_Galina. _Did she mean Galina as in my old mentor? I had to ask.

"Rose, do you know if the Galina you mentioned was my mentor?"

She nodded. "They want us, Dimitri. _Badly._ The blond said, and I quote, 'We will find you. I promise you that.' and now I'm just so terrified . . ."

"Shhhh. I won't let them get anywhere near us. I promise." I tried to soothe her, but it wasn't working.

"Dimitri, they can't be stopped. No matter how hard we try, we won't be able to stop them. I can feel it."

"I will do anything-" I was interrupted by a knock on my door. "Come in."

It was my grandmother. "Dimka, Rose, I must warn you. You must be very careful. It won't always just be your lives that you're fighting for." And with that, she left the room.

"What does she mean?" Rose asked in a quiet voice.

"I have no idea." I replied. "Go back to sleep, Rose."

"But I'm scared! What if _he _is there again? What if-"

"Rose, I won't let anything happen to you. Don't worry. Just try to get some sleep, okay?"

She nodded, a look of uncertainty on her face. "I have to change my shirt first." She looked down, and noticed the bandage for the first time. "Who did this?" she asked.

"My mother. She has medical training. She fixed the back of your head too."

She reached up and felt her head, feeling the bandage. "I'll have to thank her tomorrow." She got up off the bed and grabbed a black tank top out of her suitcase. She removed the yellow one, wincing as her skin stretched. Her stomach probably hurt badly. She slipped the black top on, and turned off the light. She crawled back into bed, and I wrapped my arms protectively around her.

I stayed awake until I heard her breathing slow, indicating that she had fallen asleep. I fell asleep, my thoughts on how much I was going to make Galina and the blond bastard pay.

**Oh nooooo! She had another dream :o What was Yeva talking about? Hmmm . . . you'll have to wait and see.**

**I was kind of disappointed to see that I didn't get the reviews I asked for last time :'( I want 130-140 reviews for this chapter, and you definitely will not get another update until I do. I just thought I'd be nice this time since you've all been waiting so long. But thank you to everyone who reviews and added me to their alerts/favorites list. It means a lot to me :D**

**VERY IMPORTANT:**

**Okay, I know I said that I wasn't giving up on Last Sacrifice. I'm sorry, but I can't get inspired to write anything for it anymore :( I've tried, but it always turns out crappy. I'm so so so sorry.**

**If anyone wants to continue it, contact me. I just can't anymore. I have too many other stories, so why keep one that I'm having a difficult time writing? I still feel really bad though . . .**


	14. Chapter 15

_**A/N: Sorry, not an update.**_

_**I probably won't be updating for another week or so.**_

_**Why, you ask?**_

_**For some reason, my USB memory stick isn't working right. It keeps saying that it needs to be formatted, which will delete everything on it. I had started a new chapter of this (Together Forever), I Did It For You and VA Games Night. I'm really mad at my USB right now, and not really in the mood to write.**_

_**Luckily, for my readers of I Did It For You, I have what I wrote saved to my actual computer. So, expect an update either tonight or tomorrow.**_

_**Readers of this and VA Games Night, not so much. Anything I had written is on that USB stick. I'm kind of discouraged about it . . . that's why nothing will be written for those for a few more days. I can't access the files on the USB stick, because if I could, I wouldn't be writing this AN right now.**_

_**Sorry, and I hope to update soon.**_

_**Sarah**_


	15. Chapter 16

**A/N: Oh my God, I'm soooo sorry for the wait. I've been so busy lately with the Christmas Caberet dance, homework, friends . . . I haven't had time to write much. I made this chapter extra long to make up for it. It's a really good chapter, too. I hope you all like it, and I hope that none of you are angry about the long wait. I'm really trying my best to write in my spare time. Like I said in my A/N for 'I Did It For You,' I'll be able to update a lot more starting on the 23rd. That's when my christmas break starts :) I'm right excited for Christmas break and, well, CHRISTMAS! Maybe, if I get enough reviews, I'll update again tomorrow, or maybe Monday. Emphasis on the maybe.**

**Okay, who else LOVED Last Sacrifice? I thought it was AMAZING! I was hyperventilating so bad near the end so bad that I literally almost passed out. I was on the phone to Natalee to tell her what happened, and I honestly don't think she understood what I was saying at the beginning because I was gasping for air. And then, after I finished hyperventilating, I started crying :'( it was just so stinking sad! For those of you who have read it, I think you know what part I freaked out at. I mean, who wouldn't freak out at that part? Oh, and who else was right about the illegitimate child _and _the murderer? I know I was!**

**But anyways, on with the chapter :) I hope you all enjoy it :) I really enjoyed writing it :D**

**This chapter is dedicated to **_**Nicia**_**, as every review she leaves me makes me smile :D**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the VA books or characters. I only own this amazing plot :)**

**CHAPTER 13**

I woke up the next morning feeling slightly refreshed, although there was a dull ache in my stomach and head from the stupid blond. _How the hell does he keep getting into my dreams? _I asked myself. I was going to get to the bottom of this, and stop it once and for all. I wasn't about to live in fear, fear that my life and Dimitri's were in danger. Despite my initial fear last night, I felt resolved now. Those bastards were going to have to face the wrath of Rose Hathaway.

Dimitri was still asleep at my side, no doubt because he stayed up longer to make sure I was okay. I smiled briefly at his sleeping form; no way would I let _anything _happen to him. He was too important to me, and I'd give my life if it meant protecting him.

Careful to not disturb him, I crept out of bed and into the hallway. I descended the stairs into the kitchen, where I could smell the breakfast that Olena was cooking. My mouth began to water; I hadn't known exactly how hungry I actually was.

"Good morning, Olena." I said as I entered the small yet cheerful kitchen.

"Good morning, Rose. How are you this morning?" she asked, her face showing concern. I knew she was referring to my ordeal last night.

"A little sore. Olena, I want to thank you for patching me up last night. I hope I didn't scare you or wake Paul up." I grimaced, remembering that I had been screaming quite loud.

She waved her hand dismissively. "No worries, Rose. I have medical training, so it was no big deal. And don't worry about Paul; he sleeps like the dead." She smiled fondly as she thought of her grandson. "The main thing is that you're okay." Her expression suddenly changed to anger. "Who is doing this to you?"

I inhaled sharply. "Well . . . it's the Strigoi that tried to kill Dimitri. He's after us, Olena. I don't know how he's getting into my dreams, because I only know one person who can . . ."

"Who would that be?"

"My friend, Adrian Ivashkov. He's a spirit user, and one of his abilities are getting into people's dreams. He pulls me out of those dreams, but he couldn't last night for some reason."

"So that's who Dimka was talking about . . ." she murmured.

"Dimitri was talking about Adrian?"

"Yes. He said something about Ivashkov not being there or something like that."

"Oh. Well, Adrian was there. They were threatening me with him, saying they'd kill him if I did anything stupid."

Olena's mouth fell open with a pop. "That's horrible!" she exclaimed.

I nodded grimly. "It is, Olena. It scares me, what this Strigoi is capable of." I decided not to tell her that the blond wanted to turn Dimitri and I. That would just freak her out, and add stress to her life.

She patted my shoulder. "Don't worry, Rose. I'm sure you'll all be fine."

"I really hope so . . ." I trailed off, smelling the food once more. "What are you cooking? It smells delicious . . ."

Olena laughed. "Dimka told me about your love of food. I've made bacon, eggs and french toast."

I nearly drooled. "Sounds good. Did you want me to go wake Dimitri up?"

She nodded. "Thank you, Rose. I appreciate it."

"No problem!" I called over my shoulder as I exited the kitchen and began climbing the stairs.

I cracked the door to Dimitri's room open, seeing if he was still sleeping. He was, so I opened the door wider and tiptoed in.

His long body was spread across the wide bed, and he was snoring lightly, his mouth slightly open. I nearly laughed at the cute sight, but held it in.

I quietly walked up beside the bed and crouched down so that my face was level with his. I stroked his long hair, and he smiled in his sleep.

I leaned in to whisper in his ear. "Dimitri . . . wake up, Dimitri . . ." Then, deciding to see if he reacted in his sleep, I whispered something else. "Dimitri . . . I have no shirt on . . ."

His eyes snapped open, and I jumped back. He looked around, and then his eyes rested on me. "Liar." he muttered.

_Liar._ He'd called me a liar in the first dream I'd had about the blond, the one where he was a Strigoi and killing me.

I bit my lip and turned away, trying to push the tears back. _You're being irrational, _a voice in my head told me. _It's not going to happen. He knows you'd save him from that. You have before._

Seeing my face before I turned away, Dimitri got up and wrapped his arms around me. "Roza, what's wrong? I was just kidding."

I sniffled, still not letting any tears fall. "I know. It just . . . brought back memories. Don't worry, I'm fine."

His expression turned soft. "It's from the first dream, isn't it? I called you a liar." I'd told him the whole first dream the day after it had happened, and I was surprised that he'd remember such a small detail.

Unable to speak, I simply nodded. He held me tighter, murmuring comforting words to me. He leaned down to press his lips to mine, and kissed me gently.

"Are you okay now, Roza?" he asked.

I nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine."

"How are your injuries?"

"A little sore, but I'll live."

"Good. Now, did you have a specific reason for waking me up?" he smiled at me, but he looked tired.

Great. Now I felt bad. "Um, yeah . . . your mother told me to get you up for breakfast. If you want to go back to sleep, I can tell her that you're tired and you don't want breakfast yet . . ."

He shook his head. "No, breakfast sounds good. Don't worry, I'll be fine. It's not like I've never been tired before."

"I know, but I just feel bad for waking you up. You look exhausted, Dimitri. And it's all my fault."

"No, Roza, it's the blond Strigoi's fault. Really, I'm fine. You don't have to worry."

"Okay . . ." I replied uncertainly. He wrapped my hand in his, and we walked downstairs together.

Olena was finishing putting the food on the big table when Dimitri and I entered the dining room. When she heard us walk in, she looked up and smiled. "Good morning, Dimka. Hello again, Rose."

"Good morning, mama. How are you?" Dimitri replied, as I waved hello to Olena.

"I'm fine, Dimka. Could you go get the silverware for me?"

"Sure. I'll be right back." he said, walking out of the large room.

Olena turned to me. "Thank you for waking him up."

"No problem, Olena. Did you want me to do anything else?"

"Could you go wake Viktoria up?"

I nodded. "Sure, Olena. Which room is hers?"

"It's two doors down from Dimitri's room."

"Okay. I'll be right back, then."

Olena nodded, and I trekked back upstairs. I walked down the hall, and stopped at the room that was two doors down from Dimitri's. I knocked on it, and heard someone grumble from inside. "Come in." Viktoria called groggily.

I opened the door hesitantly, peering in. The room was dark, as the curtains were closed. "It's Rose." I said softly.

"Oh!" she said, sitting up. "Morning, Rose." She rubbed her eyes tiredly. "What's up?"

"It's breakfast time. Your mom asked me to come wake you up."

"Oh. Okay." She paused. "Are you okay? Last night was . . . scary."

Great. I'd woken Viktoria up last night too. "Tell me about it . . . but I'm fine. My head and stomach hurt a little, but it's manageable."

"That's good. Rose . . . what happened?"

I sighed. "Well . . . there's a blond Strigoi after Dimitri and I. He's the one who almost killed Dimitri back at the Academy, and he's been tormenting me in my dreams."

"Yeah . . . Dimka said something about last night not being the first time. That's scary, Rose."

"I know. But if I ever see him again, I'm gonna beat the crap outta him!" I said angrily.

"Good. He deserves it." she said coldly, reflecting my feelings. Wow, we were more alike than I'd thought.

"I know. I'd like to give him a good beating."

"That reminds me . . . you probably won't be able to have that match with Dimitri this morning, will you?"

I frowned. I'd actually forgotten about that. "No, I guess not. . . . Damn, if only Lissa or Adrian were here . . ."

"Who's Lissa and Adrian? Why would them being here change anything?"

"Lissa's my best friend. You've probably heard of her before. She's Princess Vasilisa Dragomir."

Viktoria gasped. "Your best friend is _Princess Dragomir?_" she asked incredulously.

"Yep. We've been best friends since we were five."

"That's just . . . wow. But, who's Adrian?"

"Adrian Ivashkov. He's one of my friends, and also the queen's great-nephew."

Viktoria was starstruck. "Wow, Rose! You know so many famous people! But, I still don't understand how them being here would do anything."

"Well . . . it's hard to explain. You've probably never heard of the Moroi element called spirit, have you?"

To my surprise, she nodded. "Yeah, I have. Oskana, a family friend, specialized in spirit. Her bondmate is named Mark. He's also her husband."

"What! I've never met another bonded pair!"

"You're bonded? To who?"

"To Lissa. I died in the same car accident that killed her family a few years ago."

"You DIED?"

"Well, yeah! That's how a bond is made, Vik. You have to die and be brought back by a spirit user . . ."

"Wow! So that means that Mark died too!" she exclaimed.

"Yeah . . . hasn't anyone ever explained to you about shadow-kissed bonds?"

She shook her head. "I thought . . . I dunno, I thought it just kinda happened."

I chuckled. "Nope, you have to die. I don't really recommend it, though. It's not fun at all." I grimaced. "But yeah, if Lissa or Adrian were here, one of them could heal me and I would be able to fight Dimitri. Too bad . . ."

Viktoria grinned. "Maybe we can go to Mark and Oksana's!"

I felt myself smile. "Really? You think so?"

"Sure! I bet they'd love to meet you!"

"Well, I guess we'll have to see." Just then, there was a knock on Viktoria's door.

"Come in!" we said in unison.

The door opened, revealing Dimitri. "There you guys are! Breakfast is on the table."

"Okay!" I replied hastily.

"Sorry Dimka . . . we were just talking about Mark and Oksana. You remember them, right?" Viktoria asked.

Dimitri grinned. "Mark and Oksana? Of course I remember them! What about them?"

"Well, Rose and I were talking about spirit and I told her about them. We were thinking that after breakfast, we could go there and maybe Oksana would be able to heal Rose's head and stomach so that the two of you would still be able to have your fight."

"Hmmm . . . I hadn't thought of that. I'll get mama or babushka to call them after breakfast. Speaking of calling people, you should probably call Lissa." Dimitri said, turning to me.

"Good idea. But, I wanna eat first. I'm actually really hungry . . ." I said, just as a loud rumble erupted from my stomach.

Dimitri burst out laughing, and Viktoria was laughing so hard that she fell out of bed. "Okay, Roza." Dimitri managed to say through the laughs.

Rolling my eyes, I walked out of the room and down to the dining room.

All of the Belikovs-well, other than Dimitri and Viktoria-were seated at the table, chatting to eachother as they ate. They all greeted the three of us as we sat down. I immediately began piling food on my plate. I practically inhaled it, and the Belikovs watched me in amazement.

"Wow, Rose. I don't think I've ever seen anyone eat that much food as fast as you did!" Karolina said, looking shocked.

I grinnned. "It's a talent of mine."

"Clearly." Sonya said with a grin.

"Well, if you all don't mind, I'm going to call Lissa and then get in the shower." I said, pushing my chair out from the table.

"Go ahead." Olena said with a smile.

For what seemed like the hundredth time today, I made my way upstairs and into Dimitri's room. I grabbed my Blackberry off the nightstand, and dialed Lissa's number.

It rang a few times before she picked up. "Rose! Oh my God, are you okay?"

I laughed. "Liss, I'm fine. Don't worry. Just a little sore."

"Oh, Rose! You should have let me finish healing you!"

"No Liss, I'm really okay. Plus, I might be going to meet friends of the family, Mark and Oksana."

"I don't get it. What will meeting new people do?"

"Well, it just so happens that Oksana is a spirit user and Mark is her bonded partner."

The line was quiet for a few seconds, before Lissa started squealing with joy. From the bond, I could tell that she was ecstatic that I found more people like us, and she was happy that I wouldn't be in pain for much longer. She was also amazed that I just stumbled across them, while she had such a hard time finding other spirit users. "Rose, that's amazing!"

"I know! I'm really excited that I might meet another shadow-kissed person . . . you know, seeing as I've never met another one. Maybe he can help me with dealing with my powers . . ."

"Maybe. I'm so happy, Rose! I just can't believe it . . ."

"Me either. I'll update you later, okay? I have to get in the shower."

"Sure, Rose. Call me when you get back from Mark and Oksana's."

"I will. Bye, Liss."

"Bye, Rose."

I hung up the phone, and gathered everything I'd need for a shower.

. . . . . . . . . .

Fifteen minutes later, I was dressed and ready to go. Dimitri had informed me that we would be leaving when he got out of the shower, which took mere minutes.

So, twenty-five minutes after my phone call with Lissa, Dimitri, Viktoria, Yeva and I were in a car on our way to Mark and Oksana's house.

We arrived there twenty minutes later. It was a cute little house, with flower boxes in the windows.

Oksana had already been informed of the reason for our visit, so she waited for us on the front porch.

"Hello, everyone!" she called to us. She looked at me. "You must be Rose. I'm Oksana."

"Hello, Oksana. It's very nice to meet you. Thank you so much for allowing us to come out here!" I replied.

She scoffed. "It's my pleasure. I really don't mind healing you, and it's always nice to meet another shadow-kissed person. Mark will be pleased."

"That's good. It will be nice to meet another shadow-kissed person. I've never met anyone else, though I know two other spirit users." Three, if you count Ms. Karp . . .

"You know other spirit users?" Oksana asked.

"Yes. There's my bondmate Lissa Dragomir and my friend Adrian Ivashkov."

"Ah, I see. So you're bonded to the princess. Well, come in, all of you." she motioned for us to all enter, so we did.

We were led to a cozy living room, where Oksana directed me to sit on a couch.

"So, what is it that I'm healing?" she asked.

I lifted my shirt to reveal my punctured stomach, and pointed to the back of my head. I hadn't re-bandaged either one, so they looked pretty gruesome. Dimitri winced at the sight of them, so I reached over to squeeze his hand.

"Oh my. How did this happen?"

"Well . . . I don't know how, but I'm being tormented by a Strigoi in my dreams. Whatever injuries I get in the dream, I sustain in the real world. Last night, the Strigoi pushed me down, and I landed on a rock." I pointed to my stomach. "Then, he smashed my head against the ground." I pointed to the gash on my head. "Then, he broke my right arm and leg."

Her hand flew to her mouth, and she gasped. "That's horrible! But wait. If he broke your arm and leg and you sustain the injuries, then how aren't they broken now?"

"Well, one of Adrian's abilities as a spirit user is the ability to enter dreams. Ever since the first Strigoi dream, he's been monitoring my dreams. He's not a very good healer, so he managed to pull Lissa into the same dream so that she could heal me. I only let her heal my arm and my leg, because of the darkness . . ."

"Oh wow. Well, let's get you fixed up." she said, reaching her hand out to rest on my stomach. I felt the familiar hot then cold sensation, and watched as the wound closed. Viktoria had an amazed look on her face, so she'd obviously never seen Oksana heal anyone before now. When she was done with my stomach, Oksana reached up and healed my head.

When she was done, she sank back in the chair.

I grasped her hand. "Thank you _so_ much, Oksana. I really appreciate your help."

"No problem, Rose. I enjoy helping others . . . now go out to the garden. Mark wants to meet you." She turned to Dimitri. "You can go with her if you'd like to, Dimitri."

"Alright." Dimitri responded. Before we walked out, he turned to Viktoria. "Vika, could you get a glass of water for Oksana? I'm sure she'd appreciate it."

"Sure." Viktoria replied. With that, we walked out the door and into the garden.

A middle-aged dhampir sat on a bench, enjoying the summer day. I was shocked. I was expecting a Moroi, since I knew that Mark and Oksana were married. But no, Mark was a dhampir. It was highly unusual for a Moroi to marry a dhampir, especially when the dhampir is a guy.

"Hello Dimitri, Rose." he greeted us.

"Hey Mark. I haven't seen you in a few years. How have you been?" Dimitri asked.

Mark smiled. "I've been good, Dimitri. How have you been?"

"I've been great. You know, meeting the love of my life and all . . ." he trailed off, clutching my hand tightly.

"Yes, I see that. It's nice to meet you, Rose." Mark said, turning to me and shaking my hand.

"It's nice to meet you too, Mark. It's great to _finally_ meet another shadow-kissed person."

Mark chuckled. "Yes, it's always nice to meet another person like me."

I looked around me. "You have such a beautiful garden, Mark." It was true. Flowers were everywhere, making the small area smell amazing. There were beautiful red roses, peonies, daffodils, and many other beautiful flowers.

"Well, it helps that Oksana can make the flowers grow." he replied, winking at me.

"Yeah, I've seen Lissa do that. She's trying to help Adrian with it . . . he's not very adept with healing. Stalking people in their dreams is more his thing." I grinned.

This earned a laugh from both Dimitri and Mark. "Yes, a highly unusual ability. I've never heard of it before . . ." Mark said.

"Yeah . . . he's also really good at seeing auras."

"Oksana is too. That, healing, and reading minds." he said casually.

"Oksana can read minds?" I asked, my eyes widening.

"Yes . . . is your bondmate not able to do that?" He looked shocked, as if mind reading was something all spirit users could do.

"No. Lissa's really good at healing and seeing auras, but nothing else. Adrian's trying to teach her how to walk dreams, but it's not working so well." I said, knowing Lissa's frustration over not being able to walk dreams.

"I see. . . . Well, what about your abilities?"

"I see ghosts, and I get really nauseous whenever there's a Strigoi around."

Mark frowned, his face grim. "So you're able to communicate with the dead as well."

"Yeah . . . what's so bad about it?" I actually thought it was useful, because if it hadn't been for Mason's ghost, I would've never known where the people who were taken were being held. I wouldn't have known where Eddie was, and he'd probably be dead or turned by now.

"The more you let your guard down, the closer you get to insanity. All the darkness . . . well, it can get to you easier when you let yourself see the spirit world."

Oh. My. God. "Wow . . . I never knew that. Thanks for telling me, Mark." I said sincerely.

"You can't let your walls down. Not for anything." he warned me, a bit of fear leaking into his voice.

"I won't." I assured him.

"Sorry to interrupt," Dimitri began, "but we have to leave soon." I could see signs of worry on his face, probably because of what Mark just told me.

"Okay." Mark replied. "You'll have to visit again before you go back to America."

"We will." I replied. "Thanks again for the advice . . ."

"No problem, Rose. Be safe." he said.

Dimitri and I walked back into the house and told Yeva and Viktoria that we were leaving.

After saying goodbye to Mark and Oksana, we piled into the car.

We were about five minutes into driving when I suddenly became nauseous. "Oh shit." I swore, clutching my stomach.

"Swearing is a bad habit." Yeva said from the back seat. She didn't know what the nausea meant. But Dimitri did.

"Roza . . . please, tell me it's not what I think it is . . ." he pleaded.

I shook my head. "Sorry, but it is."

"What is it?" Viktoria asked, looking from my face to Dimitri's.

"There are Strigoi nearby." I said, just before the car was swarmed with Strigoi.

_Shit._

**Oh man! What's gonna happen? Hmm . . . you won't know until you review ;) haha I'm evil, leaving the chapter like this :) well, it had to be done.**

**I want to get to at least 150 or even 160 reviews. But, 160 might be pushing it. Well, who knows. Maybe you're all that awesome, so awesome that you'd leave me that many reviews :D let's hope you'll all surprise me . . .**

**Don't forget to vote on the poll on my profile! I'm not sure how much longer I'm leaving it open . . . and really, the votes make my decision easier. The votes will influence my decision a lot, but they won't actually decide what I do. So remember, VOTE & REVIEW, VOTE & REVIEW, VOTE & REVIEW!**


	16. Chapter 17

**A/N: Yes, I realize what happened. "How can Strigoi attack in the day?" you ask. Well, my friends, for that I have no answer. It's fanfiction, and, well, my stories arent going to be perfect. The thing is, I'm tired, and I honestly think I'm starting to get sick. My throat and ears are aching horribly, and I have a major headache, which is impairing all rational and smart thoughts. So, leave the Strigoi attaking to your imaginations, because I honestly have no answer for you. Maybe you can all pretend that it's magically night-time. Yeah, that could work . . . and hey. Cut me some slack. Even when I'm sick, I still continue to write for you guys. Now **_**that's **_**dedication XD So, if there are any mistakes, it's because I'm sick and obviously can't think clearly.**

**Thank you to everyone who reviewed, 162 REVIEWS! You guys are all AWESOME! I was so amazed with all of the reviews that I received in such a short time :D You all rock, and with dedication, some of you may get a chapter dedicated to you in the near future :) I made this chapter extra long because I was so happy with the feedback that I received :D 5000+ words :)**

**This chapter is dedicated to **_**ordinari **_**and _TeamVampireAcademy15_****. Their reviews made me smile :)**

**Also, could you guys check out **_**RobynLovesVampiresAlot**_**'s stories? The two Vampire Academy one shots were co-written by me :) and, her other two stories are pretty good. Sadly, she hasn't gotten many reviews. So, help her out? And, you already know that the one shots will be awesome, since I co-wrote them XD JK, I'm not **_**that **_**full of myself.**

**Disclaimer: I definitely do **_**not **_**own the Vampire Academy series, no matter how many times I rip out my eyelashes so that I could wish I did. Oh, and all the wishes on 11:11 . . . isn't that right, boys?**

**Dimitri: Right. Even though you're great at writing me.**

**Adrian: I agree with Belikov.**

**Christian: You can own me!**

**Eddie: Christian, you know that Richelle will never let her have you.**

**Christian: Right. Sorry for getting your hopes up, Sarah.**

**Me: *cries uncontrollably* It's not your fault, Christian. Don't worry, I still love you. I love all of you.**

**Dimitri, Adrian, Christian and Eddie: YAY!**

**Haha enjoy the chapter :)**

**CHAPTER 14**

I looked around, panicking. I couldn't let anything happen to Viktoria or Yeva. My gaze locked with Dimitri's, and we understood exactly what we needed to do.

"Vika," Dimitri whispered.

"Yes?" she replied, sounding terrified.

"You have your permit, don't you?" he asked.

Viktoria nodded, unsure of where this was going.

"Vik, when Dimitri and I get out of this car, we _need _you to slide up front and drive." I said, looking her in the eyes.

She looked completely terrified. "What about you two?"

"Don't worry about us. Just get Babushka back to the house. And _don't look back_." Dimitri warned her.

She nodded again, tears leaking from her eyes.

My eyes locked with Dimitri's again, and a thousand silent messages seemed to pass between us. _Be careful. I love you. Don't hesitate. Focus._

I was determined to make it out of this alive. With one last kiss, Dimitri and I got out of the car, stakes in hand, and the fight began.

As I fought the closest Strigoi to me, I saw Viktoria speeding off out of the corner of my eye. _Good. They'll be safe, _I thought.

I turned my attention back to the Strigoi. With a start, I realized that it was one of the Strigoi from my first dream. Definitely not a good sign.

Pushing away any thoughts of my dream, I struck out with my right fist. I heard the cracking sound when it connected with his nose.

The Strigoi snarled viciously at me, reaching a hand up to clutch his broken nose. He lunged at me, but I quickly stepped out of the way. I scraped my stake along his arm, and he screamed in agony. Using the momentary distraction, I plunged my stake into his heart, and he crumpled lifelessly to the ground.

I pulled my stake from his body just as another Strigoi pounced at me. I didn't recognize her from my dream, but that meant little.

She appeared to be a new Strigoi, her movements gangly and uncoordinated. But the fact that she had obviously been a dhampir-considering her height and way of moving-paired with her new speed helped her a lot. Yet, she was still no match for me.

I lunged at her, trying to push her down. Really, it was only to distract her, since I knew that I probably wasn't going to actually get her down. All I really wanted was a clear shot at her heart.

My distraction worked, because as she tried to push me off, she left her chest wide open. Yup. Definitely a new Strigoi.

In one smooth motion, I shoved my stake into her heart. She screamed once in agony, then sank to the ground.

I snuck a glance at Dimitri, and he was doing well. Strigoi bodies were littered around him, and I watched as he killed yet another. He was so graceful in everything he did; even as he killed, there was a deadly grace. He was untouchable.

It was a mistake, letting myself get distracted by him. A Strigoi pounced on my back, pushing me roughly against the dirt road. A sharp pain in my ribs and stomach caused me to wince. Dimitri saw this and tried to get to me, but the Strigoi swarmed him and he had to fight.

A cold, familiar voice spoke in my ear. "I told you I'd find you, Rose."

My blood ran cold. I'd know that voice anywhere, as it continuously tormented my subconscious. It was the blond. "Yeah, I got the message." I grunted, trying-and failing-to shove him off my back. It jostled my rib again, and the pain grew.

He laughed. "Try all you want, but you're not getting me off."

"Well, inactivity and I don't match." I growled.

"Well. Aren't you just a little spark of energy?"

He was really pissing me off. "Okay, what the hell do you want? I'm very uncomfortable right now, if you haven't noticed."

"Well, my dear, I want to taste you. To watch as the life flows out of you and into me. And then, I'll turn you." he said nonchalantly.

Well. He was blunt. "Have fun trying, because I'm sure as hell not going to give up!" I said through gritted teeth, finally shoving him off.

I sprang up from the ground, facing him, the pain in my ribs forgotten. A feral snarl slid through my lips as I pounced on him. Well, tried to pounce on him. He flicked me away as if I were a bug, and I hit my head.

"ROZA!" Dimitri yelled.

I sat up, brushing the hair from my face. "I'm fine, Dimitri. CONCENTRATE!" I shouted.

I stood back up, and the blond began circling me.

"You know," he began. "You're not as tough as I thought you'd be. I thought that you'd have at least injured me by now."

"Believe me, this is just the beginning." I snarled.

He chuckled. "You're quite amusing, you know. Thinking you can beat me and all. Newsflash: You can't. But, have fun trying."

"Oh, I'll have fun all right. I'll have fun shoving my stake into your heart and ending this."

He full on laughed at me. "You are so naive, Rose. Don't you get it? _You can't win._" With that, he sprang at me, pinning me once more. I struggled, but somehow-believe me, I don't know how-I knew that I wasn't getting out of this.

With a triumphant smile, he leaned down, opening his mouth.

The second his fangs pierced my skin, I cried out in the brief flare of pain. But, that pain was soon replaced by a pleasure so great that my struggles stopped. I laid there, basking in the waves of pleasure that threatened to carry me away.

"Roza! Oh no, fight! FIGHT! ROSE!" Dimitri screamed. But I was too far gone in the endorphins to care, let alone react. I just laid there, my eyes fixed on Dimitri.

Even high on vampire endorphins, I still recognized the beauty of Dimitri's strike. He fought fiercely through the throng of vampires surrounding him, his rage turning him deadlier than before.

He soon staked the last Strigoi, and ran with great speed until he reached me.

I felt the absence of the blond's endorphins as he was ripped away from me by Dimitri. I tried to open my mouth to protest, but I found that I was too weak. I hadn't even realized how much blood I'd lost; frankly, it was scary. I could think clearer, but only marginally. I still missed the endorphins; endorphins so amazing, they would put any Moroi bite to shame. But my thoughts were rational enough that I knew I shouldn't miss them, because they were bad and made me weak.

I shifted my focus back to Dimitri. He was grappling with the blond, neither one of them showing any sign of weakness. Although he showed no weakness, Dimitri was showing signs of fatigue. The fight was wearing on him; he'd taken down countless Strigoi today already. But, he kept fighting, fighting for me.

I tried to move, to do anything at all, but a sharp pain in my ribs and abdomen stopped me. I didn't know what was injured, or even when it happened because, well, I was too high on the endorphins to be aware of the pain. But I was definitely aware of it now; it spread through me like a wildfire. I whimpered at the pain, which made Dimitri turn his head towards me.

Taking advantage of Dimitri's distraction, the blond pushed him down, causing his ankle to twist. Once he was on the ground, the blond stomped on his arm. I heard the sickening crack, and knew that it was broken. But Dimitri didn't cry out or make a noise; he wasn't about to show any weakness.

"DIMITRI!" I cried, emotion making my voice strong and clear.

"Roza . . ." he said quietly.

The blond's maniacal laughter filled the night air, and he knew he'd won.

I looked up, hearing the only thing that could possibly tear my eyes away from Dimitri: Car tires screeching. An van came tearing down the road, one I didn't recognize.

"Nathan!" a shrill, accented voice called.

The blond's head snapped in the direction of the voice, so his name was obviously Nathan. "Yes, Galina?"

_Galina._ It was her; the mysterious Galina, the one who never showed herself in my dreams, yet was the mastermind of the Strigoi's plans. "Come on, leave them! Viktoria has obviously brought reinforcements. We'll get them another time."

"Yes, Galina." Before he left, Nathan leaned down to whisper in my ear. "We'll be back, Rosie. No matter what you do, we'll be back, and we won't fail again. And that's a promise." Chills ran down my spine at the threat; and suddenly, he was gone.

I heard the opening and closing of car doors, and feet pounding against the ground. "Rose! Dimka! Oh God, Karolina. Get the medical kit. Nikolai, help me get them onto the grass!" Viktoria's panicked voice commanded. I was impressed; even in a situation as bad as this, she took control.

"Viktoria . . . they're gone, right?" I whispered.

"Yes Rose, they're gone. Don't worry, we're gonna fix you up. Can you walk?"

I groaned. "Vik, I have no idea. I'm so weak . . . and my whole stomach is on fire."

She looked uncomfortable. "What?" I asked.

"Well, don't panic, but you're covered in blood."

I was confused. "What do you mean? From where?"

"I think . . . I think your stomach." she replied shakily.

"Vik, pull my shirt up to see."

She did as she was asked, and when she did, she turned her face away and gagged.

"Is it really that bad?" I asked, fearing the answer.

Karolina arrived at my side, and I knew that she was trying very hard not to look away like Viktoria did. "Rose . . ." she began. She cleared her throat, trying to find words. "Rose, your rib punctured your skin. It's . . . um . . . it's kinda sticking out. A lot."

"Oh. Well, I guess it really is that bad. But I'm fine, focus on Dimitri. His arm is broken, and his ankle twisted. Patch him up, then focus on me. I can wait."

Viktoria looked appalled. "Rose, did you not just hear Karolina? _Your rib is sticking out of your skin. _You are not fine, and you certainly can't wait. Plus, you also have a rock lodged in your stomach!"

I crossed my arms defiantly, but winced when I accidentally hit my protruding rib. I let my arms fall to my sides again. "Yes, I can." I said firmly. "Get Dimitri fixed up, and get him over here. Then you can help me."

Viktoria pulled at her hair in frustration. "God, you're more stubborn than Dimitri! Fine then! We'll fix Dimitri up first! Happy now?"

I smiled smugly. "Very."

She rolled her eyes, and stalked over to Dimitri. Karolina shot me a look of amazement before following her.

A dhampir boy, presumably Nikolai, came to sit beside me. I pulled my shirt down, not wanting him to gawk at my rib.

"Um, hi Rose. You've never met me, but I'm Viktoria's friend Nikolai."

"Nice to meet you, Nick. I can call you Nick, can't I? It seems like an okay nickname for Nikolai." I could tell that I was babbling about nothing, but I couldn't seem to stop.

He looked at me like I had three heads. "Yeah . . . sure. Nick is fine. Um, how are you holding up?"

"Well, considering the fact that I've lost most of my blood, have a rock lodged in my stomach, a rib is poking through my skin and I probably have at least two more broken, pretty good. I don't even really feel anything." I said honestly.

"Wow. That's . . . good, I guess. Well, not good that you've got all those things wrong with you, but good that you don't feel any pain."

"Yeah, it's probably the endorphins." I replied bluntly.

He seemed to notice the bite on my neck in that moment. My hair must have at least partially hidden it, because neither Viktoria or Karolina seemed to notice. "Uh, Vika?" His voice was slightly distressed. "We seem to have another injury."

"What is it?" I heard Viktoria ask.

"She was bitten. She lost a lot more blood than we thought."

Viktoria swore in Russian, and though I knew every swear word in Russian, she said it too quickly for me to understand.

Nikolai and I sat in silence for a few more moments, until Viktoria and Karolina came back over, followed by a limping Dimitri. They made a makeshift sling for his arm out of Viktoria's jacket.

Dimitri dropped down beside me. "Hey, comrade. How are you holding up?"

His face was grim. "Much better than you are, Roza. Let me see your rib."

I nodded, and pulled my shirt up. Dimitri's expression was horrified, and I almost pulled my shirt back down. But then I saw the tears in his eyes. A few spilled over and ran down his face, landing on me.

I reached a hand up to wipe the tears away. "Dimi, it doesn't hurt that bad. Really. I barely feel it."

"But you will. You can't feel it now because you're still half high on the endorphins. But when they wear off, you're going to be in a lot of pain. And I can't stand the thought of that."

"Shhh. We'll deal with that later. What we need to do now is to get back to Mark and Oksana's to do something about it." I paused. "Vik, I need you to do something for me."

"What is it, Rose?" she asked.

"I need you to call Liss and tell her what happened."

"Rose . . . are you sure you want me to do that?" she said hesitantly.

I nodded. "Yes. She needs to tell Adrian. Hold on, I'll check if she's awake." I said, right before I slipped into Lissa's mind.

They were getting the last of my stuff out of my room, and they were all tired.

I pulled out. "Yes, call her now. She's going to bed soon."

Karolina and Nikolai looked completely lost, probably because they had no idea how I knew. But Dimitri and Viktoria knew exactly that I'd done.

I grabbed my remarkably undamaged Blackberry out of my pocket, and handed it to Viktoria. "Liss is speed dial number two. Now, you guys need to get me in the van."

"I'll do it." Dimitri said.

I shook my head. "Oh no you won't, you crazy fool. Your arm is broken, remember? You can't lift me."

"Right . . ." He looked to Nikolai. "You can lift her into the van and lay her down, right?"

"Of course. Go get in, and I'll put her beside you." Nikolai replied.

"Thank you, Kolya." Dimitri said, sincerity lacing his tone.

"No problem, Dimka. I don't mind. And I'll be as careful as I can."

Dimitri nodded. He, Karolina and Viktoria walked over and got into the van, leaving Nikolai and I. "I promise I'll be gentle." he murmured.

"Okay. Just get it over with." I knew that it was going to hurt; there was no denying it.

As gently as possible, his arms went under me, and he lifted me into his arms.

I couldn't help it; the pain was too bad. I screamed, and I screamed a lot. Profanities left my mouth almost every second, and it got worse as he lowered me into the van. I was panting and sweating, not to mention on the verge of passing out.

My head rested on Dimitri's lap, and I knew that he felt like crying again. He stroked my face, murmuring that everything would be okay.

"Comrade, I think I'm gonna pass out." I panted heavily, shadows dancing at the edges of my vision.

"Hang on, Roza. You can't pass out, just breathe."

I breathed in deeply, letting it all out.

I was doing fine until we hit a bump. And my bump, I mean feels-like-a-mini-mountain type bump. I flew up out of the seat, and screamed one last time before blackness swallowed me up.

**Lissa POV**

We were just about to head off to our separate rooms for the night when my phone rang. I checked the caller ID. "It's Rose!" I squealed.

I jumped up and down excitedly, knowing she'd tell me all about the visit to Mark and Oksana.

Christian laughed at me, and I scowled at him. Adrian, however, looked as excited as I felt, and Eddie and Mia just looked happy at the fact that Rose was calling.

"Rose!" I said happily.

But it wasn't Rose. It was a girl with a Russian accent. "Lissa?" she asked.

"Yes, I'm Lissa. Who is this?" I questioned, confused.

"I'm Dimitri's sister Viktoria. Rose asked me to call you to say-" but she was cut off by a blood-curdling scream of agony, followed by another.

"Oh my God, is that Rose that's screaming?" I asked, hoping I was wrong. I put it on speakerphone so that everyone could know what's going on.

"Yeah . . . that's the thing. Well, the Strigoi from her dreams kind of ambushed us, and I had to leave Rose and Dimka so that I could get Babushka back to the house. I grabbed my sister Karolina and my friend Nikolai to come help, and we came back for them as soon as we could." She paused, inhaling sharply. "When we got back, they had killed every Strigoi except for two: A blond, and Dimka's old mentor, Galina." I saw Adrian pale at the mention of her name. "They fled when we got there, but Rose and Dimitri were both injured."

"What happened to them?" I asked, my voice shaking. Christian wrapped an arm around me. We heard Rose scream again, and all winced.

"Dimitri's arm is broken and he twisted his ankle. But Rose . . ." she paused, getting choked up. "There's a rock lodged in her stomach, she has a few broken ribs, she was bitten and . . ." she started crying, but continued anyway. "One of her ribs puntured her skin. It's sticking out pretty far."

I couldn't take it; I leaned into Christian and started crying into his chest.

I heard Rose's weak voice. "Comrade, I think I'm gonna pass out."

Dimitri's voice was strained. "Hang on, Roza. You can't pass out, just breathe."

"Lissa, we're going back to Mark and Oksana's. Do you think that they'll be able to do anything?" Viktoria asked, her voice shaky.

I didn't know the answer to that question. But it wasn't me who answered; it was Adrian. "Viktoria, this is Adrian. What will have to be done is that someone will have to get her rib back inside and set it; then everything can be healed. Okay?"

I was impressed. Adrian took charge, and he seemed to know what he was talking about.

Viktoria sniffled. "Okay. Adrian, she's in so much pain . . ."

"Just stay calm. Freaking out won't do any-" Adrian's voice was cut off by the loudest scream yet. One filled with such agony, pain . . . it was unbearable just to listen to it. "Oh God, what happened?" Adrian asked, becoming frantic.

"Oh my God, oh my God . . . we hit a bump. A _big_ bump. Oh God, she passed out. Dimka, _do something!_"

"Like what? Vika, maybe it's better that she passed out. She probably can't feel the pain now." Dimitri replied.

"Viktoria." Adrian said calmly.

"Yes?" she asked.

"I'm going to try to reach Rose. I'll see if she's okay, okay?"

"How are you-right. Spirit. Rose told us about what you can do. Okay."

Adrian whispered in my ear. "Keep Viktoria on the line. We need to know what's going on outside of Rose's subconcsious."

"I will. Now go, see if she's okay." I whispered back.

**Adrian POV**

When Viktoria told us how bad Rose's injuries were, I thought that I was going to be sick.

But seeing them was a whole different matter.

I created a dream, but left the place in which it took place up to Rose's subconcsious.

She chose a little house out in the middle of nowhere, a house with one of the most beautiful little gardens I'd ever seen.

"Rose?" I called.

She materialized right in front of me. "Adrian!" she shouted, wrapping her arms around me, but crying out in pain when she hit her rib. "Ouch! Goddamnit!"

"Easy, Rose. Don't hurt yourself even more than you already did."

"You know? But how?"

"Liss put Viktoria on speakerphone. We all know what happened."

"Oh. Makes sense. And I guess that if I'm here talking to you, then I must have passed out. Right?"

I winced. "Yeah . . . not so pleasant for us to hear. Girl, you have a great set of lungs on you."

"I don't even remember . . . I screamed _really _loud, didn't I?"

"Loud would be an understatement." I chuckled. "Now, let Dr. Adrian see your boo-boo."

Rose grimaced. "You probably don't want to see that. It's pretty gruesome."

"Rose, I don't care how gruesome it is. I want to help you, okay? And I'll help, starting with those bite marks." Before she could protest, I reached out and laid a hand on the side of her neck. I summoned up the spirit energy that I needed to heal it, which was becoming increasingly easier.

When it was done, I pulled my hand away, feeling extremely pleased that it took minimal energy. "Better?" I asked.

"Much. But, are you sure that you want to see the rest?" she asked hesitantly.

"Yes. I need to assess the damage."

"Okay, but don't say I didn't warn you." she said before pulling her shirt up.

"Oh Rose . . . that looks like it hurts. A lot."

"No shit Sherlock!" she snapped. She inhaled deeply, then spoke again. "Sorry for snapping at you, Adrian. I'm just so frustrated over everything!"

"Calm down, little dhampir. It's okay."

She shook her head vigorously. "It's not okay, Adrian. I'm terrified, okay? _The _Rose Hathaway is _terrified._ It's not the end, Adrian. Nathan said he'd be back. He whispered it to me right before he ran. He said, I quote '_We'll be back, Rosie. No matter what you do, we'll be back, and we won't fail again. And that's a promise._' "

"That bastard! He has no right to threaten you like that!" I yelled angrily.

"I know, but he did. I'm scared of what's to come, Adrian. And Yeva got me thinking about something else too!"

"What is it?"

"She told Dimitri and I last night that it wouldn't always just be our lives that we're fighting for. What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"Rose, Yeva's a witch of sorts, right? She like, sees the future in her dreams or something like that?" I asked.

"Yeah . . . why?"

I think I knew exactly what Yeva meant, no matter how unbelievable and amazing it was. But, I didn't want to freak Rose out, so I didn't tell her. "Just wondering. I'll talk to Liss, see if she has any idea what the old coot meant. Now, back to your, um, protruding rib."

"Yeah . . . how are we even gonna fix that?"

"You probably aren't going to want to hear this, but it has to be pushed back in. The bone needs to be set, and then it can be healed." With every word I said, Rose's face tured paler and paler.

"Are you . . . are you sure it's the _only _way?"

"Positive. Rose, I'll do it for you if you want. But you need to trust me, okay?"

Swallowing hard, she nodded. "I need you to lay down somewhere, okay?" I said.

"I'll lay on Mark's bench. It's right over here." she said, leading me to a small wooden bench.

"So this is Mark and Oksana's house?"

"Yeah, the garden is pretty, isn't it?"

"One of the prettiest I've ever seen. Come on, lay down. I'll do it as quickly and painlessly as I can, but I'm not gonna lie, it will hurt."

She laid on the bench and closed her eyes tightly. "Just do it."

"Okay." I positioned myself beside her. "Hold your breath in three, two, one . . . now!" I said, wrenching the bone back inside. The scream that she let out pierced my heart-and ears, but that was irrelevant-because I knew that it was my fault that she was screaming. She started panting, and she opened her eyes. They were filled with tears, ones she refused to shed.

"Is it over?" she whispered weakly.

I shook my head. "I got it back inside, but I still need to set the bone."

"Well for God's sake! Just do it already!"

"Okay. One, two, three, breathe!" I positioned the bone in the right place, and she let out a small whimper. "All done. You did good, Rose."

She let out her breath. "Thank God that's over. That hurt like a bitch!" she attempted a smile, but it looked more like a grimace. "Adrian . . . can you pull the rock out? I'd like to get all the painful stuff over with in the dream. Oksana can heal me, just pull it out."

"Are you sure, Rose?" I asked uncertainly.

"I'm sure. I'd rather get it all over with."

"Okay . . . do you want me to count or just do it?"

"Just do it. Wow, I'm saying that a lot. But yeah, do it."

"Okay." I saw that the rock was in the right side of her abdomen, right across from the small, barely noticable scar left from the rock in her dream. "Rocks don't like you, do they?"

She laughed. "No, I guess n-OUCH! Shit, you couldn't have waited until I was done speaking?" I figured I'd do it while she was distracted.

"Well, at least you didn't expected. I know that it's a lot worse when you have warning."

"I guess you're right. Thanks, Adrian. I appreciate your help. I don't know what I'd do without you."

"Well, your life would be a lot less fun." I joked. She didn't know how much her words meant to me.

The dream started to fade. "You're waking up. Take care of yourself, little dhampir."

"I will. Thanks again."

The dream faded away.

**Well, was that crazy or what? I loved writing it :) stupid Nathan and Galina . . . So, Adrian knows what Yeva meant, and he didn't tell Rose. Good thing, or bad thing?**

**Since you guys did so great with reviewing on the last chapter, let's see if this time, we can get to 180+! I know that you guys are awesome, but I wanna see if you're all AMAZING! So, impress me :)**

**Don't forget to vote on my poll! It's very important!**

**See you all next time :D Which will hopefully be in the next two or three days, depending on reviews :)**


	17. Chapter 18

**A/N: Hello everyone! Extra long chapter for you guys! 7000+ words! You'll know why by the time you get to the end author's note.**

**Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed! And, thanks to those who were PM'ing me and were concerned about me being sick! You're all so nice :)**

**This chapter is dedicated to **_**ordinari**_**, **_**Nicia**_** and **_**megpie93**_**! You guys are all awesome :)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own VA or any of the characters. They belong to the insanely talented Richelle Mead :D And I don't own the songs used in this chapter either.**

-Enjoy the chapter! Sarah :)

**CHAPTER 15**

**Dimitri POV**

When Roza passed out, I almost lost it.

I faintly heard Viktoria telling Lissa what had happened. Then she spoke to me. "Dimka, _do something!_"

I looked up from Rose's face to glare at her. "Like what? Vika, maybe it's better that she passed out. She probably can't feel the pain now." I turned my attention back to Roza's beautiful face. A sheen of sweat covered it, and she breathed heavily. My heart was breaking; her lips were turned up in a grimace.

I saw Viktoria hand Karolina the phone out of the corner of my eye. "Dimka."

"What?" I asked sharply.

"Adrian is going to dream walk with her. She'll be fine, okay?"

I breathed a sigh of relief. Thank God for Adrian. "Okay. Vika, I'm sorry for being so short with you. I'm just so worried about her . . ."

"I know, Dimitri. I'm worried about her too. I love her already, like a sister, you know." she said quietly.

"I know. I hope to God that Adrian can fix her up a little."

"Yeah, me too. Just like Lissa fixed her arm and leg last night."

"Yeah . . . I feel like the lucky one. I mean, not that a broken arm isn't bad, but Roza . . . she lost so much blood because of that bastard. I'm going to make she that she's never bitten again." As I spoke, I ran my fingers over the small puncture wounds in her neck. As I stared at them, tears welled in my eyes. _I should've been stronger. I should've been able to protect her, _I thought.

Seconds later, the bitemarks faded right before my eyes. "Adrian . . ." Viktoria and I whispered together. I was going to have to call him and thank him for everything.

"I wonder if he's going to push her rib back in . . . that's what he said had to be done on the phone." Viktoria mused.

"_Push it back in?_ Oh God, she'll be in so much pain . . ." I cried. I pulled her shirt up to examine her rib again. Blood was slowly oozing from the puncture mark. "Vika, hand me something to wipe off the blood."

She grabbed some gauze from the medical kit. "That's the best we've got."

"That will do just fine." Reaching out with my unbroken arm, I took the gauze from Viktoria's outstretched hand. I pressed it gently to the wound, and Rose winced. Deciding not to push on it again, I simply dabbed away the blood that surrounded it, then threw the gauze in the bag that Viktoria held.

Suddenly, Rose screamed, and I mean _screamed._ I saw the rib going back in her body. She continued screaming, and I saw Karolina look back and gasp. I heard her telling Lissa that the bone was going back in, though she had no idea how.

Once the bone was back inside, I saw it jerk into place, and Rose whimpered. I leaned down and kissed her forehead.

Her breathing was heavy and labored. Suddenly, the rock in her stomach flew out and onto the floor. Viktoria and I exchanged a knowing look. Adrian was really helping her out.

Viktoria grabbed more gauze and covered the hole in her stomach and the hole left from her rib. It took all of two minutes before she was done.

And that was when my beautiful Roza's eyes flew open.

**Rose POV**

I "woke up" to Dimitri's face staring at me.

"Hey comrade." I croaked.

"Roza . . . you gave us quite the scare, you know."

"Sorry." I chuckled weakly. The day's events just completely drained me. _Literally._

"It's not your fault. Are you feeling better now that Adrian fixed you up a little?"

I grimaced, remembering the pain. "A bit, but not by much. My broken ribs hurt a lot. And I still feel really weak."

"I wish I could make it better . . ." he murmured. "Kolya, are we there yet?" he called up to the front.

"Just about." Nikolai replied.

"Good." He reached out to stroke my cheek with his good arm. "I don't know what I'd do if it wasn't for Adrian."

I choked on my air intake. "Did you _really _just say that? Or am I imagining things?"

He paused a second before answering. "Roza, I realize now how good he really is. He helps you when no one else can. I have to acknowledge that he's really not as bad as everyone thinks he is. I'm so grateful to him that he keeps helping you with these dreams. No matter how much I wish that I was the one who helps you like that . . ." he said wistfully.

I was shocked. Dimitri was _grateful _to _Adrian_? Shock soon turned to delight. "I'm glad. He may act like a carefree royal pain in the ass, but he's good. To the core. You just have to get to know him better."

"I know. I can see that now."

"We're here." Nikolai announced.

"Okay. Karolina, can you go tell Mark and Oksana what happened? I don't want Rose to be moved until it's absolutely necessary."

"Of course." Karolina replied, stepping down out of the van. We watched as she walked up and knocked on the door. The door opened, revealing Oksana and Mark. They smiled when they saw Karolina, but their smiles disappeared as they took her expression in. They began talking, although I couldn't hear what they were saying, but Karolina was gesturing with her hands a lot. As she talked, Oksana's hand flew up to her mouth, and Mark's expression turned grim. The three of them made their way to the van, and the back door opened.

They took in mine and Dimitri's disheveled appearances. "Oh my . . ." Oksana murmured.

"Another run-in, I see." Mark said. "Karolina told us what happened."

"Yeah . . . I guess we're danger magnets." I attempted to joke, but failed miserably and had a coughing fit. A moan of pain escaped my mouth when it made my broken ribs move.

Oksana climbed up into the van. "We figured that it would be easier to just come out here than to have to move you and hurt you even more."

I grasped her hand. "Thank you, Oksana. I'm so grateful that you're doing all of this, even at the risk of darkness . . ."

Mark spoke up. "You don't have to worry about the darkness. Oksana and I have learned to balance it quite well."

I closed my eyes. I was just so tired. "That's good."

"Roza, don't sleep. You've lost a lot of blood, you can't go to sleep!" Dimitri said frantically.

I opened my eyes to glare at him. "Calm down. I'm not stupid; I know that I can't go to sleep. I'm just closing my eyes."

A look of hurt crossed Dimitri's face. I sighed. "Sorry. I'm just tired, and in a bit of a cranky mood because I'm in pain. I don't mean to be mean to you."

"I know, Rose. I'm just worried about you, that's all." he replied.

"Well, let's get you fixed up so that you," Oksana pointed to me, "don't have to be so cranky, and you," she pointed to Dimitri, "don't have to worry so much."

"Sounds good to me." I replied.

Oksana gently laid her hands over my ribs and stomach, her touch so feather-light that I barely felt it. I felt the hot then cold sensation that I always felt when I was healed, and I breathed easily for the first time since my ribs were broken.

I inhaled deeply, luxuriating in the simplicity of it. "Thank you so much, Oksana."

She smiled sweetly, though you could notice her exhaustion. "No problem, Rose." She turned to Dimitri. "Now, it's your turn."

Dimitri shook his head. "No Oksana, I'll be fine. Don't waste your energy on me."

Oksana and I both glared at him. "Dimitri . . ." she warned.

He sighed in defeat. Even badass Dimitri Belikov couldn't compete against the glares of two women. "Fine."

Oksana smiled at him, and laid a hand on his injured arm. Her eyes closed in concentration, and I saw the barely noticeable lines of pain in Dimitri's face relaxed.

Quickly, before he could protest, she reached down and healed his ankle.

"Oksana." His tone was disapproving. "You shouldn't have healed my ankle. It would've been fine with some ice."

"Well comrade, it's too late now." I said, smirking. Then I added, "Well, unless you want to go twist your ankle again."

"I'd rather not." he conceded.

"That's what I thought."

"Oksana, thank you so much for helping us. We appreciate it." Dimitri said sincerely.

"It was my pleasure. Now, I think I'm going to go lie down. I hope to see you all again soon, on much lighter terms." she laughed.

"Yeah, it would be nice to see you again without you having to heal me." I joked.

"Yes, it would. Goodnight Rose, Dimitri, Viktoria, Karolina, Nikolai." she said. She looked so tired.

"Night." the five of us said in unison. Mark nodded in goodbye, took Oksana's hand, closed the van door and they made they way back into their house.

I sat up and turned to Viktoria. "Vik, where's my phone? I think that I should probably call Lissa."

"Karolina has it." she replied.

"Here, Vika. Pass it to Rose." Karolina said, reaching back to hand Viktoria the phone. Viktoria, in turn, handed it to me, and I pressed speed dial number two.

Lissa answered on the first ring. "Hello?" She sounded worn out, and much older than seventeen.

"Aw, Liss . . . cheer up! I'm not dead or anything!"

"Rose? Rose! Oh my God, are you okay? Did Oksana heal you yet? I'm putting you on speakerphone!"

"Liss, one question at a time! Yes, I'm fine and yes, Oksana healed me. We're on our way back to the house now."

"Oh, thank God! You scared the hell out of all of us!"

"Oh. My. God. Did you just swear? I'm shocked, princess." I teased.

"Oh, shut up! I'm just so glad that you're okay!"

"Yeah, me too. God, having broken ribs, one of which was sticking out of me, a rock in my stomach _and _losing half my blood was pretty damn inconvienient!"

"Oh! I almost forgot about the bite. How are you feeling?"

"Tired. A little buzzed. I don't think that the endorphins have fully worn off yet."

"Druggie . . ." I heard Christian mumble.

"I am not a druggie, Count Sparkula. It's not like I offered my neck or anything!"

I heard a faint "ow" from Christian. "Liss, what was that for?"

"Leave her alone, Christian. She's been through a lot today." Lissa replied.

"Joykill." he muttered.

"Butthole." Lissa returned.

"Asswipe!" I chimed in, making everyone laugh.

Eddie spoke next. "Rose, I'm so glad you're okay."

"Me too, Ed. Me too."

"How did they even know where you were?" Mia asked.

"I have no idea. It makes me wonder if we're being watched." Dimtri and I shuddered at the thought of being watched by Strigoi.

"That's scary to think about." Mia said.

"I know. But, it won't be going on much longer. I swear to God that I'm going to hunt the bastards down and kill both of them. They'll wish they never messed with Rose Hathaway and Dimitri Belikov." I growled.

"Rose, don't do anything reckless. Please." Lissa said. I felt her worry for me through the bond. I tapped into it a little more, and found that she worried that I would go off alone to try and face them all, ultimately getting my self killed or turned.

"Liss, I know what you're thinking, and I promise that I'd never do something so reckless."

"I know. I just worry about you, Rose. I know how you get. Nothing can stop you."

"Liss, don't worry. I'm going to be good."

"That's all I ask."

I had just realized that I hadn't heard Adrian speak once. "Liss, where's Adrian?"

"He was exhausted, so he went back to his room already. He knew that you were going to be okay, so he didn't stick around and wait for you to call."

"Oh. Okay. Well, I'll let you go. I know that you're tired."

"Okay. Goodnight, Rose. Be careful."

"Night, Liss. I'll call you tomorrow."

"Okay. Bye."

"Bye." I pressed the end button on my phone and put it in my pocket.

"How is she?" Dimitri asked.

"Worried about me, as usual." I replied with a chuckle.

"Yeah, same old, same old." he said, pressing a kiss to my forehead.

"So, do you really feel a lot better, Rose?" Viktoria asked.

"Yeah. I'm just feeling a little sluggish from the blood loss."

"Well, that's an improvement from a half hour ago." Karolina commented.

"Definitely." Nikolai said.

After that, we drove the rest of the ten minutes back to Dimitri's house in silence.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

When we stepped in the front door, we were smothered with hugs from Olena, Sonya and Yeva.

"I'm so glad you're okay." Olena whispered in my ear as she hugged me tightly. "You scared me, you know."

"I know."

"Please tell me that you at least killed him."

I shook my head sadly. "No, he got away. He left us in pretty bad shape."

"Really? But I don't see-right. Oksana. You guys went back."

I nodded. "Yeah. She fixed us both up. I'm still weak though, considering all the blood I lost." I reached a hand up to rest on the side of my neck, as if the bitemarks were still there.

"You were bitten." It wasn't a question, but a statement.

"Sadly. But I'm a lot better than I was. I could barely think straight after it happened."

"I can imagine. What else happened?"

"Dimitri's arm was broken and he twisted his ankle and I . . . well, I had at least three broken ribs and, well, one of them puntured my skin and was, um, sticking out. Not pleasant. I also had a rock stuck in my stomach again."

Olena hugged me tighter. "Oh Roza . . . that's horrible. I'm glad you're all fixed up, though."

"Yeah . . ." Just then, my stomach rumbled loudly.

Everyone laughed. "I guess you're hungry. I haven't made supper yet, but I'll do that now." Olena said, letting me go.

Sonya walked over to me. "I'm glad you're okay, Rose."

"Thanks, Sonya." I replied, smiling at her.

"No problem." Then she followed her mother to the kitchen.

Yeva came to me last. "Remember what I said last night, Rose. Don't forget it."

"Babushka, I don't even know what you mean!" I cried, frustrated.

"You will, sooner than you think." she said mysteriously, before stalking off.

"Argh!" I growled. Dimitri came up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist. I leaned back and relaxed instantly.

"Roza, do you want me to show you the rest of the house?" he asked.

"Sure, Dimi. I'd love to see it." It was a welcome distraction from Yeva's confusing warning.

Dimitri grabbed my hand and lead me through the house, showing me each room. The last room we stopped at was the music room.

He opened the door, and inside was a baby grand piano. It was beautiful, and my fingers twitched at my side. I wanted to play; I hadn't in a few years.

"When I was still living here, I played piano." Dimitri explained.

"I didn't know you played!" I exclaimed.

"Yes, I did." he said, chuckling.

I walked over and sat down. I rested my fingers on the keys, and closed my eyes. It felt right.

Without thinking, I let my fingers drift over the keys. I found myself playing "We Are Broken" by Paramore, and I started singing along.

_I am outside,  
And I've been waiting for the sun.  
And with my wide eyes,  
I've seen worlds that don't belong  
My mouth is dry,  
With words I cannot verbalize  
Tell me why,  
We live like this._

_Keep me safe inside,  
Your arms like towers  
Tower over me,  
Yeah_

_'Cause we are broken,  
What must we do to restart?  
Our innocence,  
And all the promise we adored.  
Give us life again,  
'Cause we just wanna be whole._

_Lock the doors,  
'Cause I'd like to capture this voice  
It came to me tonight,  
So everyone would have a choice.  
And under red lights,  
I'll show myself it wasn't forged.  
We're at war,  
We live like this._

_Keep me safe inside,  
Your arms like towers  
Tower over me._

_'Cause we are broken,  
What must we do to restart?  
Our innocence,  
And all the promise we adored.  
Give us life again,  
'Cause we just wanna be whole._

_Tower over me,  
Tower over me . . .  
And I'll take the truth at any cost._

_Cause we are broken,  
What must we do to restart?  
Our innocence,  
And all the promise we adored.  
Give us life again,  
'Cause we just wanna be whole._

Claps erupted from all around, and I nearly jumped out of my skin. I hadn't realized that I'd attracted an audience.

Dimitri looked proudly at me, although he looked a little shocked. I hadn't told him about my piano skills.

"Wow, Rose! You're amazing!" Viktoria gushed.

I felt myself blushing. "Thanks, Vik."

"You never told me _you _played piano. Or sang, for that matter." Dimitri said accusingly, though you could see amusement in his eyes.

"It never came up. Besides, it's not like I had a piano at the academy."

"Where did you learn to play like that?" Olena asked.

"Well, I played when I was little, and when Lissa and I ran from the academy, I kinda picked it up again. I guess I never forgot how to play." I shrugged.

"Well Rose, you play beautifully." Karolina said truthfully.

"Thanks! I really missed playing . . ."

"I'm so amazed. You don't seem like the piano-playing type at all!" Sonya exclaimed.

"Yeah, I know. Lissa was the only other person who knew that I still loved to play." I admitted.

"Well, Karolina and I should probably go finish making supper. You'll have to play for us again sometime." Olena said.

"Of course!" I replied.

"I'm going to sit down. Being pregnant is definitely hard on the feet." Sonya said as she rubbed her belly lovingly.

"When are you due?" I asked.

"In about a month. Not long now . . ." she murmured.

"Is it a boy or a girl?" Dimitri asked.

"Girl. I'm kinda stuck on what I'm going to name her."

"I'm sure you'll think of something." Dimitri replied.

"I'm sure I will." she said over her shoulder as she left the room.

Dimitri grabbed my arm and turned me towards him. "Roza . . . I'm speechless. You're so talented!"

"You don't sound too speechless." I joked, poking his arm.

"Be serious. You were great, Rose."

"Thanks, comrade. Now, let's put your skills to the test. Play something for me." I said.

"Okay . . . Move over a little."

I did as he asked, and he sat beside me.

His fingers moved elegantly over the keys, and I recognised the song as "Hallelujah" by Leonard Cohen. As he played the intro, he eyed me meaningfully. Oh. He wanted me to sing.

_Now I've heard there was a secret chord,  
That David played and it pleased the Lord  
But you don't really care for music do you?_

_It goes like this, the fourth, the fifth  
The minor fall and the major lift  
The baffled king composing Hallelujah_

_Hallelujah, Hallelujah.  
Hallelujah. Hallelujah._

_Your faith was strong but you needed proof  
You saw her bathing on the roof  
Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew you.  
She tied you to a kitchen chair  
She broke your throne, she cut your hair  
And from your lips she drew the Hallelujah_

_Hallelujah, Hallelujah.  
Hallelujah, Hallelujah._

_Baby I have been here before  
I know this room, I've walked this floor  
I used to live alone before I knew you.  
I've seen your flag on the marble arch  
Love is not a victory march  
It's a cold and it's a broken Hallelujah_

_Hallelujah, Hallelujah.  
Hallelujah, Hallelujah._

_There was a time you let me know  
What's really going on below  
But now you never show it to me do you?  
And remember when I moved in you  
The holy dove was moving too  
And every breath we drew was Hallelujah_

_Hallelujah, Hallelujah.  
Hallelujah, Hallelujah._

_Maybe there's a God above  
But all I've ever learned from love  
Was how to shoot at someone who outdrew you  
It's not a cry you can hear at night  
It's not somebody who has seen the light  
It's a cold and it's a broken Hallelujah_

Hallelujah, Hallelujah.  
Hallelujah, Hallelujah.

_You say I took the name in vain  
I don't even know the name  
But if I did, well really, what's it to you?  
There's a blaze of light in every word  
It doesn't matter what you've heard  
The holy or the broken Hallelujah_

_Hallelujah, Hallelujah.  
Hallelujah, Hallelujah._

_I did my best, it wasn't much  
I couldn't feel so I tried to touch  
I've told the truth, I didn't come to fool you  
And even though it all went wrong  
I'll stand before the Lord of Song  
With nothing on my tongue but Hallelujah_

_Hallelujah, Hallelujah.  
Hallelujah, Hallelujah.  
Hallelujah, Hallelujah.  
Hallelujah, Hallelujah.  
Hallelujah, Hallelujah.  
Hallelujah, Hallelujah.  
Hallelujah, Hallelujah.  
Hallelujah, Hallelujah.  
Hallelujah._

When we finished, we both stood up. We pushed the piano bench in, and then Dimitri's lips were suddenly on mine. He kissed me fiercely, passionately . . . it took my breath away. When he pulled away, he lifted me up and spun me around.

"Roza, that was beautiful beyond words. I've never heard anyone with a voice more beautiful than yours. You sound like an angel."

"You're pretty amazing yourself! You're way better than I am at playing piano. And really, I'm not an angel." I snorted.

He tipped my chin up. "Yes you are. My angel. My guardian angel. And thank you, Roza."

"It's true. That was some of the most beautiful piano playing that I've ever heard. And thanks, now "Your Guardian Angel" is stuck in my head."

"Hey, it's a good song! Remember at the prom when I sang it to you?"

"How could I forget? Everything from that night is burned in my mind. I'd never want to forget any of it. Sing it to me again, comrade."

"Anything for you, Angel."

"Oh stop it!" I said, smacking his arm playfully.

He began singing quietly in my ear while slowly rocking me from side to side.

_When I see your smile,  
Tears run down my face  
I can't replace  
And now that I'm strong  
I have figured out  
How this world turns cold  
And it breaks through my soul  
And I know, I'll find  
Deep inside me  
I can be the one._

"You already are the one." I whispered.

He chuckled, and continued singing.

_I will never let you fall  
I'll stand up with you forever  
I'll be there for you through it all  
Even if saving you sends me to Heaven_

"My ass! I'd never let you die for me!"

"But I would, you know." he said quietly, then continued.

_It's okay,  
It's okay,  
It's okay . . ._

_Seasons are changing  
And waves are crashing  
And stars are falling  
All for us.  
Days grow longer  
And nights grow shorter  
I can show you  
I'll be the one._

_I will never let you fall  
I'll stand up with you forever  
I'll be there for you through it all  
Even if saving you sends me to Heaven_

I was about to protest again when he put a finger over my lips.

_'Cause you're my,  
You're my, my . . .  
My true love.  
My whole heart.  
Please don't throw that away._

"Never." I breathed.

_'Cause I'll be there for you  
Please don't walk away and  
Please tell me you'll stay . . ._

_Yeah, whoa . . .  
Stay . . . whoa . . ._

_Use me as you will,  
Pull my strings just for a thrill  
And I know I'll be okay  
Though my skies are turning gray_

_I will never let you fall  
I'll stand up with you forever  
I'll be there for you through it all  
Even if saving you sends me to Heaven._

_I will never let you fall  
I'll stand up with you forever  
I'll be there for you through it all  
Even if saving you sends me to Heaven._

"Oh Dimitri . . . God, I love you so much. More than anything." I whispered.

"I love you too, Rose. You're the best thing that ever happened to me." Just as he was leaning in to kiss me again, the door to the music room flew open.

"Um . . . sorry to interrupt, but supper's ready." Viktoria announced, looking uncomfortable.

Dimitri pecked me on the lips. "Okay, Vika. We're coming."

"Okay." she replied, walking away.

"That was pretty funny. Did you see how uncomfortable she looked?" I chortled.

"Yeah, that was funny. I mean, we were only about to kiss. It's not like there was any clothing removal going on . . . no matter how much I wish there was." he whispered, pulling me closer.

"I agree with you there. I'd love to show you just how talented I really am." I said seductively.

"Easy there, cowgirl. I know _exactly _how talented you are."

"Well, surely you want a replay."

"I do. A lot." he growled.

"In due time, comrade. Now, lets get some food. I feel like I'd fall over if you weren't holding on to me." I admitted.

"Right. I forgot about that, actually." he said sheepishly.

"No worries." I grabbed his hand and pulled him out of the room, where we sat and ate.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

After supper, I felt like I would explode from over-consumption.

After saying goodnight to the others, Dimitri and I made our way up to his room. I grabbed my black and pink pajama bottoms that had Thumper from "Bambi" all over them and a pink camisole.

Just as I was about to put my camisole on, Dimitri's arms went around my waist, his bare chest against my back. "You're so beautiful it hurts." he murmured against my neck. His breath made my skin tingle and goosebumps appear, and I giggled with giddyness.

I turned my head to look at him. "Why, thank you Mr. Belikov."

His lips captured mine in a fiery kiss. My mouth opened automatically and his tongue darted in, exploring it. A quiet moan escaped my mouth, which spurred him on. He began kissing a trail down my jaw and neck, and my head tilted back in response. He started sucking on the sensitive spot on my neck, and I moaned again, slightly louder.

"Dimitri . . ." I breathed.

"Yes, Roza?" he whispered in my ear, sending waves of desire through my body. It intensified when he began nibbling on my earlobe.

"Don't stop." I gasped.

He groaned and laid me down on the bed. He hovered over me and began kissing me again. My arms went around him, tracing patterns on his muscled back. His muscles tensed under my touch, which pleased me. I affected him as much as he affected me.

He pulled away once more to look at me. All I had on were my pajama bottoms and a black bra, and he clearly liked it.

"So beautiful." he repeated. I leaned up to kiss him again, and, taking advantage of his distraction, I flipped us over so that I sat on him. I ran my fingers over his chest, and he shivered with desire.

"My turn." I murmured, leaning down to kiss him slowly. I fisted my hands in his hair, kissing him harder. He put his hands on my hips, holding me tightly. I kissed along his jawline, nipping at his skin occasionally.

I pulled away abruptly, enjoying the confused look on his face. I pulled my camisole on.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"Dimitri, we can't go any further. Well, at least not when your family is home!" I teased.

He pouted, which was adorable. "Next time when we're alone, you're mine." he growled.

"No complaints there, comrade. I'm tired, let's sleep."

His face softened. "Sure, Roza. Goodnight . . . have a good sleep."

I yawned loudly. "You too, Dimitri. See ya in the morning." I turned the lamp off, and we were immersed in darkness. He opened his arms for me, and I gladly curled up to his warm chest. He pulled the blanket over us, and I soon fell into a peaceful, dream-free sleep."

**Viktoria POV**

After helping mama and Karolina clean up, I went to bed. The day was way too crazy for me, and it really tired me out.

I curled up under my warm blankets, and waited for sleep to come. As I did, all I could think about was his voice. . . . But it was stupid. I mean, I've never even met him. _If it's so stupid, then why do I keep thinking about him? _I asked myself. I shook my head to clear my thoughts, and thankfully fell asleep soon after.

Then I started dreaming. I was in a beautiful garden, and the sun shone brightly overhead. I'd never been here before, so I had no idea where it was.

"You must be Viktoria." a voice said from behind me, making me jump. The voice . . . I knew it. I turned around, only to come face to face with one of the hottest guys I'd ever seen. His emerald green eyes watched me with amusement, a smirk on his lips. A small breeze ruffled his messy sable brown hair.

"I know you." I said dumbly. _Way to go, Vik._

He threw his head back in laughter. "Well, you should. We talked on the phone earlier."

Then it clicked. "Adrian! I knew that your voice sounded familiar!" I smacked my face for not realizing it sooner.

"No need to beat yourself up, Viki." he said with a laugh.

_Viki. Oh my God, he gave me a nickname! _I mentally happy danced. "Yeah . . . so what are you doing here?"

"I couldn't get you out of my mind." he replied.

_Oh. My. God. Did he just say that? Ahhhh! _I decided to play it cool. "Weird, because I couldn't get you out of mine either." Then I realized what I'd said. "Crap, I just said that, didn't I?"

He smiled, showing his fangs. "Yeah, I think you did. No worries, though. I'm cool with it." He motioned at a bench. "Care to sit?"

"Um . . . sure, Adrian." was my brilliant response. He walked over to the bench, and I followed.

Once we were sitting down, he spoke. "So . . . how's Rose? And your brother?"

"They're fine. Thanks for helping Rose earlier."

"No problem. She's my little dhampir; one of my best friends." he smiled fondly as he thought of Rose. I couldn't help the sudden jealousy that I felt. "I used to love her, you know." he said quietly.

"You say used to . . . why?" I couldn't help asking.

"Because I think I've found someone else."

"Oh . . . that's good . . ." I tried to keep my disappointment out of my voice, but I'm not sure how good I did.

"Yeah. I haven't known her too long, but she's beautiful. She has big brown eyes, long brown hair that's streaked with gold. You might know her; her name is Viktoria Belikova and she's sitting right beside me."

I looked into his eyes, and saw that he was telling the truth. I smiled widely. "Well, I think I've found someone as well. He has emerald green eyes, sable brown hair that's kinda messy looking, though I'm not sure if it's intentional or not. Maybe you've heard of him; his name is Adrian Ivashkov and he's sitting with me in this beautiful garden."

He smiled, and it nearly took my breath away. "Well, now I know that she feels the same."

"Yeah, I'm sure of his feelings now too."

"I have a suggestion: How about we stop talking about eachother in third person?"

"Sounds good to me, Adri."

"Adri, huh? I like it. It has a nice ring to it." He reached over to hold my hand.

"Glad you like it. I sure do." I said, grinning at him. Then my face turned serious. "Now, I have a few questions for you, if you don't mind."

"Sure. Ask away, Viki."

"How old are you?"

"Twenty."

"What's your favorite color?"

He burst out laughing. "Blue."

"Favorite activity?"

"Drawing."

"Favorite song?"

"Changes every day. Right now, it's "Could It Be You" by H*Wood."

I was basically humoring him now.

"Favorite animal?"

"My teddy bear, Mr. Fluffy."

I burst out laughing. "Are you serious?"

"Very. But, I like dogs too." He grinned at me. "Anything else?"

"No, I think I've got all the information I need."

"Good. My turn to ask questions."

"Shoot."

"How old are you?"

"Just turned seventeen last month."

"Favorite color?"

"Purple, pink and blue."

"Favorite activity?"

"Riding horses. You'd think that they wouldn't like me since I'm a dhampir, but they don't really mind us."

"That's cool. Favorite song?"

"I don't know the name . . . it's really pretty though. Rose played it on the piano and sang it earlier."

"Rose sings? And plays the _piano_?" he asked, a shocked look on his face.

"Right. I forgot that she said that Lissa was the only other one who knew she played. But yeah, and she's really good. I think she played something by Paramore . . . "We Are Broken" or something like that."

"Yeah, that's it. It's one of her favorite songs. That's so weird! But anyways, back to questioning." he grinned. "Favorite animal?"

"Horse and _my _teddy bear, Nitey Night bear." **(A/N: That's actually the name of my childhood teddy bear XD)**

"Interesting. Well, I've gotten all the information I need."

"Good. So . . . where are we?" I asked, looking around at the lovely garden.

"This was my grandmother's garden. It's nice, isn't it?"

"It's beautiful! It's so . . . peaceful."

"Yeah, I know. I loved coming here when I was a kid."

"I can imagine."

"Mmhmm . . . Well, I'd better go."

"But you just got here!" I protested.

He chuckled, and smiled at me. "I know. But don't worry, I'll be back tomorrow night."

"Okay. Can't wait 'till then."

He stood up, pulling me up with him. Very gently, he cupped my face. My heart beat faster in anticipation.

He pressed his lips to my forehead. I almost pouted; it wasn't really what I expected, but I'll take it. "That should hold you off until tomorrow night. Goodnight, Viktoria."

"Night, Adrian."

The dream faded off into blackness, and I woke up.

My room was dark. I looked at the clock, and it said that it was 2:15 a.m.

I found myself grinning like a fool. I could almost feel his lips on my forehead.

Sighing in contentment, I rolled over and fell asleep with a smile on my face.

**Adrian POV**

I think I might have died and went to Heaven.

I knew that dreamwalking with Viktoria was a good idea!

She had no idea how badly I'd wanted to kiss her lips. I'd held back, because I hadn't wanted things to move too quickly. Hell, who am I kidding? Of course I wanted things to move quickly. But I wanted our first kiss to be special.

Feeling like I'd burst if I didn't tell anyone, I decided to dreamwalk with Rose.

Again, I left the location up to Rose's subconscious. I found myself in a music room, and Rose sat at a piano, playing softly to herself. She hadn't realized that I was there, so I decided to just listen for a minute.

She played "We Are Broken," singing softly to herself.

When she finished, I clapped. She turned to me, looking like a deer in the headlights.

"Adrian!" she squeaked.

"That was great, little dhampir. Viktoria was right; you can play."

She looked confused. "Viktoria? You talked to her again?"

"I dreamwalked her. Couldn't get her out of my mind."

Rose gasped. "Okay, spill."

I rolled my eyes. "Apparently, she couldn't get me out of her mind either. We talked for a while. Rose . . . I think I love her." There. I dropped the bomb. "It may seem like it's too soon but . . . it's true. It's like taking what I feel for you and multiplying it by a thousand."

"Awww!" Rose squealed, jumping off the piano bench to hug me. "That is _so _cute! How does she feel about you?"

"I think she feels the same. Her aura lit up as we talked more. I feel whole, like I found a part of me that I didn't even know was missing."

"Yep. You are _so_ in love with her. Now you know why I could never be with you. Those are my feelings for Dimitri. And even though it sounds impossible, those feelings grow. I remember back when I was first falling in love with Dimitri, I felt like that. Now it's so much more; we're connected on a whole different level. Sometimes it feels like we're the same person."

I smiled. "Then I can't wait. But . . . how will I ever see her? There's the slight problem that she lives in Baia and I live in Pennsylvania."

"Love has a funny way of working things out."

"I hope so. I have to see her, not just the dream version of her."

"Yeah, she's great. I'm so glad you've found the one you love; even more glad that it's her. At least I know her and what a great girl she is."

I laughed. "Yeah, you won't have to beat anyone up."

"And I would, too. I care about you, Adrian. I don't want you to get hurt."

"I know. And I'm grateful to have a best friend like you."

"And since I'm your best friend, maybe I can pull a few strings and get you here." she grinned like the cheshire cat. "I'm like a fourth daughter to Olena; I'm sure she'd be okay with you coming. Maybe Lissa, Christian, Mia and Eddie, too."

"That would be better. At least then Dimitri wouldn't suspect anything."

"Adrian, you have to tell him." Her voice had a no-nonsense tone to it.

"I know . . . just . . . not yet. I'd prefer to keep my head attached to my body for a little longer." I shivered at the though of an angry Dimitri. The guy was pretty scary.

Rose laughed. "Adrian, Dimitri's opinion of you has changed drastically. Like, I'm talking complete 180. He sees you now for the good person you are, not the alcohol-loving party-boy."

I gaped at her. "Are you serious? What changed his mind?"

"He's grateful to you for saving me so much and helping me with the dreams."

"Well great then! I guess I won't die after all!"

Rose rolled her eyes. "Okay then, Mr. Overly Dramatic."

"Well, I'll leave you to your piano-playing dream. I just wanted to tell someone. I have no idea how you went so long without spilling the truth."

"What can I say? I'm amazing."

"Sure, Miss Full-of-Herself. Goodnight, little dhampir. Sweet dreams."

"See ya Adrian. I'll call you tomorrow with Olena's decision."

"Thanks." Then I let the dream go and returned to my room at the Academy.

Pleased with myself, I laid down in my bed, quickly falling asleep to dreams of Viktoria.

**So, how was it? This chapter was sooooo long, but I felt like I had to write more since there's 3 songs in here and they don't really count. So yeah, that's why it's so long :)**

**Who else thinks that Viktoria and Adrian are a cute couple? I know I do :D**

**I want to get to 200 reviews by the next time I update!**

**Don't forget to vote on my poll! I'm not sure how much longer I'll have it open. Maybe another week or so. I'm not in a rush.**

**So, REVIEW and VOTE!**

**Songs listened to for this chapter:  
Careful - Paramore  
We Are Broken - Paramore  
Bruised - Jack's Mannequin  
Dark Blue - Jack's Mannequin  
My Heart - Paramore  
Into The Airwaves - Jack's Mannequin  
Angels On The Moon - Thriving Ivory  
Swim - Jack's Mannequin  
Let The Flames Begin - Paramore  
Rocketeer - Far East Movement ft. Ryan Tedder  
Don't Let Me Fall - B.O.B.  
Grenade - Bruno Mars  
Hallelujah - Leonard Cohen  
Could It Be You - H*Wood  
Doncamatic - Gorillaz ft. Daley  
Hot Mess - Chromeo  
Pretty Girl Rock - Keri Hilson**


	18. Chapter 19

**A/N: Oh my God, I'm so sorry about the wait! I've been really busy lately, and haven't had much time to finish. That's why I've written my longest chapter yet, just for you guys. Almost 13000 words, not counting the A/Ns. I'm pretty proud of myself for writing it :D I hope you all like it!**

**OMGOMGOMG AWAKENED COMES OUT TOMORROW! AHHH I'M SOOOOOOO PUMPED :D :D :D**

**Disclaimer: For the zillionth time, I don't own VA or any songs that I use :P They all belong to the extremely talented Richelle Mead (who I'm totally jealous of, both of her writing and her hair.)**

Happy Reading! Sarah

**CHAPTER 16**

**Rose POV**

I woke up the next morning to my head laying on Dimitri's chest and him stroking my hair gently. I sighed contentedly and snuggled up to him even more, wanting to be as close to him as possible.

"Good morning, Roza." he said quietly, affectionately. "Did you sleep well?" he asked sweetly.

"Mmm . . . yeah, I did. And wow, do I ever feel great! I feel refreshed." I replied, stretching.

"I was hoping that you'd say that . . . guess what?" he whispered in my ear.

"What?"

"We have the house to ourselves until suppertime."

It took me a minute before I understood what he meant. We were alone. _Completely_ alone. A smile slowly spread across my face as I looked up at him. He grinned at me, a very, _very _sexy grin.

Slowly, I made my way up until his face was a few inches from mine. "Well, what do you suggest we do then, all alone in the house?" I asked in my sexiest voice.

It must have been quite sexy, because he growled in response. "I can think of all sorts of things to do."

"And what would those things be?"

"Things like this." He pressed his lips to mine fiercely, then pulled away abruptly. "Or this." He began trailing hot kisses down my jaw, neck and collarbone, making me squirm. His hand reached down to cup my butt, and he squeezed it gently.

"Yeah, we could do that." I agreed, slightly breathless.

Needing no further encouragement, he returned to kissing me. Kissing escalated into clothing removal and, well, I'm sure you all know the rest.

No matter how many times it happened, sex with Dimitri (or, cowboy, as I now knew he liked to be called) just got better and better. He was so loving and attentive, and he made me feel things I'd never felt before. Whenever I was with him, I felt whole. Like a void in my heart and soul had been filled. In these moments together, it didn't matter that our relationship was frowned upon. It didn't matter that we were currently being hunted by two insane, sadistic Strigoi that were intent on making us join them. In these moments, all that mattered was us. Rose and Dimitri. Two people deeply in love with eachother.

When we were done, I collapsed tiredly on Dimitri's chest. He wrapped his arms around my back, and I felt safer than I had in days.

"Dimitri, I love you." I murmured.

"I love you too, Roza." he replied, gently rubbing my back.

I sighed. "As much as I don't want to get up right now, I have to take a shower."

Now it was his turn to sigh. "Alright, I guess I can let you go." As he spoke, he unwrapped his arms from around me. I started to get up, but fell back tiredly.

Dimitri's expression turned worried. "Roza, are you okay?"

"I'm fine, just a little tired, that's all." I mumbled.

"Are you sure you should be showering alone?"

I smiled at him and rolled my eyes. "I'll be fine. I see what you're trying to do, and it won't work, cowboy."

"Rose, I'm serious. I'm worried that you'll fall over in the shower or something like that."

"Dimitri, I'll be fine! I promise. You know what? I'll sing in the shower so that you know that I'm okay."

He looked skeptical. "Fine, but if you're quiet for even two minutes, I'm coming in."

"Fine." I replied. He was such a worry wart! I sat up, actually getting up this time. But, in getting up, I was struck with intense head rush, and started falling backwards.

Two strong arms caught me. "Still sure you're okay?"

I nodded fiercely. "I'm fine. I just stood up too fast."

"Dear God, you're stubborn!" he grumbled.

"Well, you love me anyway."

"I do love you Roza, which is why I'm so worried about you."

I turned to face him. "Dimitri, seriously. You're overreacting! I'm fine. F-I-N-E."

"If you say so." he replied evenly.

I stalked over to my suitcase and grabbed my makeup bag and my clothes. "I'll be done in like, ten minutes." I told Dimitri. He nodded curtly, and I walked to the bathroom. I shut the door behind me and sank to the ground. What the hell was wrong with me? Dimitri was just concerned for me, yet I snapped at him.

I stood up angrily and turned the water on. Without testing the temperature, I stepped in.

"Ouch! Fuck!" I yelled. The water was _way _too hot.

"Roza? Are you okay?" Dimitri called.

"I'm fine, I just made the water too hot by accident."

"Okay . . ."

After adjusting the water, I began to sing, as promised.

_You're the direction  
I follow to get home  
When I feel like I can't go on,  
You tell me to go.  
And it's like I can't feel a thing  
Without you around  
And don't mind me  
If I get weak in the knees,  
Because you,  
Have that effect on me._

_You do._

_Everything you say,  
Everytime we kiss  
I can't think straight,  
But I'm okay.  
And I can't think of  
Anybody else who  
I hate to miss,  
As much as I hate missin' you._

_Months going strong now  
And no goodbye.  
Unconditional,  
Unoriginal,  
Always by my side.  
Meant to be together  
Meant for no one  
But eachother  
You love me  
I love you harder, so._

_Everything you say,  
Everytime we kiss  
I can't think straight,  
But I'm okay.  
And I can't think of  
Anybody else who  
I hate to miss,  
As much as I hate missin' you._

_So please, give me a hint.  
So please, give me a lesson  
On how to steal  
Steal a heart . . .  
As fast as you stole mine,  
As you stole mine . . .  
Yeah . . ._

_Oh, everything you say,  
Everytime we kiss  
I can't think straight,  
But I'm okay.  
And I can't think of  
Anybody else who  
I hate to miss,  
As much as I hate missin' you._

_So please, give me a hint.  
So please, just take my hand._

By now I had finished washing my body, and was moving on to hair.

_I lie awake again,  
My body's feelin' paralyzed  
I can't remember when  
I didn't live through this disguise  
The words you said to me,  
They couldn't set me free  
I'm stuck here in this life  
I didn't ask for . . ._

_There must be something more,  
Do we know what we're fighting for?  
Breathe in, breathe out  
Breathe in, breathe out.  
All these masks we wore,  
We never knew what we had in store  
Breathe in, breathe out  
Breathe in, breathe out._

_A storm is rolling in,  
The thunder's loud; it hurts my ears  
I'm payin' for my sins  
And it's gonna rain for years and years  
I fooled everyone,  
Now what will I become?  
I have to start this over,  
I have to start this over . . ._

_There must be something more,  
Do we know what we're fighting for?  
Breathe in, breathe out  
Breathe in, breathe out.  
All these masks we wore,  
We never knew what we had in store  
Breathe in, breathe out  
Breathe in, breathe out._

_I fooled everyone,  
Now what will I become?  
I have to start this over,  
I have to start this over . . ._

_There must be something more,  
Do we know what we're fighting for?  
Breathe in, breathe out  
Breathe in, breathe out.  
All these masks we wore,  
We never knew what we had in store  
Breathe in, breathe out  
Breathe in, breathe out._

_There must be something more . . .  
Breathe in, breathe out  
Breathe in, breathe out.  
There must be something more . . ._

I thought I'd sing one more song as I rinsed my hair.

_I still hear your voice  
When you sleep next to me  
I still feel your touch_

_In my dreams.  
Forgive me, my weakness  
But I don't know why,_

_Without you, it's hard  
To survive . . ._

_Cause everytime we touch,  
I get this feeling  
And everytime we kiss  
I swear I can fly  
Can't you feel my heart beat fast?  
I want this to last.  
Need you by my side.  
And everytime we touch,  
I feel the static  
Everytime we kiss,  
I reach for the sky.  
Can't you feel my heart beat slow?  
I can't let you go.  
Want you in my life._

_Your arms are my castle  
Your heart is my sky,  
They wipe away tears that I cry.  
The good and the bad times,  
We've been through them all.  
You make me rise when I fall . . ._

_Cause everytime we touch,  
I get this feeling  
And everytime we kiss  
I swear I can fly  
Can't you feel my heart beat fast?  
I want this to last.  
Need you by my side.  
And everytime we touch,  
I feel the static  
Everytime we kiss,  
I reach for the sky.  
Can't you feel my heart beat slow?  
I can't let you go.  
Want you in my life._

When I finished the song, I turned the water off. I was feeling lightheaded from all of the steam. My stomach rumbled; I hoped to God that Dimitri was making breakfast.

As I went to reach for my towel, black spots began to dot my vision. Feeling more lightheaded than before, I sat in the shower and put my head between my legs, taking deep breaths. _Breathe, Rose. It'll pass, just breathe, _I told myself.

A few minutes later, it did pass. I grabbed my towel and wrapped it around myself, then got out of the shower.

I put on my hot pink bra and matching panties, then my favourite pair of black skinny jeans. Then, I put on a light pink camisole, with a magenta deep v-neck long-sleeved shirt. I curled my eyelashes, applied black eyeliner on the top and bottom eyelid, and dabbed on some mascara. I finished off with some lemon glaze lip gloss that I bought at Bath & Body Works, and brushed my hair out. I'd decided that I was going to let it dry on its own.

As soon as I opened the bathroom door, I was met by the intoxicating scent of bacon. After dumping my makeup bag on Dimitri's bed, I made my way down to the kitchen.

Dimitri stood in front of the stove, completely engrossed in the eggs and bacon that he was cooking. I tiptoed up behind him, ready to scare him when he greeted me. "Hello, Roza."

"Dammit Dimitri! You didn't even turn your head! I was quiet, too. How the hell did you even know I was there?"

He laughed, still not turning around. "Guardian secrets."

I growled. "You can't say that anymore, because I'm a guardian too."

Finally, he turned around, an amused look on his face. "Fine. Cowboy secrets." he said, folding his arms across his still-bare chest.

"Dimitri Belikov, you are one of the most infuriating men I've ever met. Right above Adrian, and right below Christian."

He eyed me for a second before bursting into laughter. "Oooh, that's pretty bad." he chortled.

I smacked his chest. "Whatever, just watch the food. I'll kill you if you burn it."

Rolling his eyes, he turned back to the stove. "Can you handle making toast?" he asked, barely concealed amusement in his voice. He knew that I couldn't cook to save my life.

"Yes, I can." I replied, sticking my chin out defiantly, even though he couldn't see because his back was turned to me. I marched over to the breadbox. "White, or whole wheat?"

"Whole wheat." he replied in a bored tone.

"Gross." I commented, making a face.

"It's good for you."

"Too bad it tastes like shit." I wrinkled my nose at it. "White bread is the best."

"It's full of sugar, and it's bad for you." he said matter-of-factly.

"Too bad I don't care."

"It honestly amazes me that you're not fat, considering how much you eat."

I shrugged. "Maybe it's all of your rigorous training sessions." I said with a smile. Then, my smile fell. "Dimitri, I'm so sorry for snapping at you earlier. I had no ri—"

"Shh." A finger over my lips silenced me. "But—" I tried to protest, but he silenced me with a look. "Roza, believe me, it's fine. You don't have to apologize."

"But I do—"

"No, you don't."

"Dammit, can I get one sentence out?"

"Nope."

Rolling my eyes, I turned back to the bread. "How many pieces?"

"Just one." he replied. So, grabbing one piece of nasty whole wheat and two pieces of white, I stuck them in the slots of the toaster and pressed them down.

I turned back to Dimitri. "So, how long did you say that we were alone for?"

He laughed. "Until suppertime so . . . about seven more hours."

"Wow! Where did they even go?"

"They wanted to do some shopping in Novosibirsk. They left really early this morning."

"Well yeah, they must have! I mean, it's only 11am now." I moved closer to him, resting my hands on his chest. "Well then, what do you suppose we do?"

"We can do whatever we want."

"Sounds good to me."

He reached up to stroke my still-wet hair. "Beautiful." he whispered before leaning down to capture my lips with his.

The kiss wasn't hot and passionate, it was sweet, gentle and loving. It showed how sweet Dimitri really was, and I liked it. Today was going to be a day just for us, and we were going to enjoy it.

Moments later, we jumped apart. The kitchen was filled with a burning smell, and smoke was steadily flowing from the toaster and the eggs. I popped the toast—well, what was supposed to be toast but now just looked like a black square—up, and discarded it. I looked over at Dimitri, who was scraping burnt egg into the sink. The bacon was the only thing that actually survived, but just barely. It was pretty crispy looking.

Dimitri turned to me, smiled, and then we both burst into laughter. "I guess I can't handle making toast!" I choked out between giggles.

"No, I guess not." he agreed, still smiling.

"Oh well, I guess that's why you're here, even though you burnt the eggs."

"I suppose. But hey, at least you love me."

"Meh. That could change, if you keep burning my food."

Suddenly, he grabbed me by the waist and pulled me to him. I giggled like a small child, and struggled to get away from him. "You're lying." he whispered in my ear. "You would love me anyway."

I pretended to think about it for a second. "No, I don't think I would. Because really, what do I love more than food?"

Suddenly, my feet were no longer on the floor, and I was in Dimitri's arms. He ran into the living room, chucked me on the couch, and pounced on top of me. I was having a giggle fit. "Dimitri, what are—" I was going to say "What are you doing," but Dimitri's lips on mine cut me off. The sweetness from the kitchen was gone, and replaced with passion. Hey, I wasn't complaining. I liked this side of him just as much.

His hand trailed up and down my side, his lips battling mine, trying to get a reaction out of me. But, I kept up the charade, even though it was only by a thread.

"Come on, Roza." he said, his lips moving down my neck. "Admit it."

"Admit what?" I was struggling to keep my voice even. I couldn't show him just how much he was affecting me. He was going to have to work for it. So I played dumb, even though I knew that he knew I was pretending.

"Admit that you'd love me anyways."

"Sorry. Can't do that."

He growled, and it was so sexy that I almost admitted defeat. "Roza," he groaned. "You are so mean to me."

"Yet another one of my many talents, cowboy."

His lips connected with mine once more, but this time he tried the sweet approach. He stroked my cheek with one hand as the other went under my back. I was oh, so close to dropping the facade.

He pulled away, but only briefly. He pressed a small kiss to my lips, then my nose, then both cheeks, then my forehead, and finally, my lips again.

I couldn't do it anymore. I wrapped my arms around his neck and threw myself into the kiss. My stomach rumbled and I felt a little lightheaded, but I didn't care. I loved this man so much, and he needed to know it.

He pulled away again. "So, what do you love more than food?" he asked, grinning at me.

"You." I replied, poking his nose affectionately. "Even though you burnt the eggs. Speaking of eggs, I'm really hungry. So, how about we go out, eat the bacon, make some fresh toast and eggs, and then maybe we can do something."

"Sounds like a plan, Rosie."

"Again with the Rosie. I might have to slap you."

Chuckling, he stood up. I sat up, and he offered me his hand to help me up. Brushing it away, I stood up on my own . . .

. . . and nearly fell over. Dimitri's steady hand caught me once more, and I shot him a grateful look.

"Are you okay?" he asked, worry in his brown eyes.

"I'm fine, just hungry. I think that's the problem."

"Well, that can be fixed." he said, scooping me up in his arms so that I wouldn't fall again. He carried me to the kitchen in silence, a worried look still on his face.

He set me down in a chair and grabbed me a plate. He put some strips of bacon on the plate, and walked over to the toaster. He put two slices of white and one slice of whole wheat in, and then grabbed the eggs out of the fridge.

I took a bite of a piece of my bacon as he prepared the eggs. "Holy shit, this bacon is amazing!" I exclaimed. I held the piece in front of me and stared at it lovingly. "You cease to amaze me with your skills. Anything else I should know about? Are you like, secretly an astronaut?"

He laughed. "No, I'm not an astronaut. And yes, I play guitar, and back when I lived here, I rode horses. Surprisingly, they don't hate us."

My eyes sparkled at the mention of horses. I'd always thought that horses were beautiful. "Oh Dimi, can we go horseback riding today?"

"If you want to, Roza. I'll teach you. Plus, I know the perfect place. We can go rent horses for the day." As he spoke, he popped the toast up. "Butter, peanut butter, or both?"

"One with butter and one with peanut butter, please! Oh, and the horse thing sounds great!" I said, devouring another piece of bacon. Then I thought back to his earlier statement. "You play guitar?"

"Yeah, I was a very musical child." he smiled fondly, remembering his childhood.

"Will you play for me sometime?" I asked timidly.

"Of course. Roza, I'd love to." He passed me my toast, and I devoured the first piece—the one with butter—hungrily. Already, I felt much better.

I bit into another piece of bacon. "So, do you think that they'll have a horse that's all black? I think they're the prettiest."

"It's likely. I remember that I always rode the gray one, I think his name was Alexei."

I nearly choked on my bacon. "They named their horse _Alexei_? That's a name for a person, not an animal!"

"I know. But Alexei was a great horse. I'd go to the stables every day just to brush him, talk to him, stuff like that. I considered him as my horse."

I smiled, thinking of a young Dimitri talking to a horse. "I'm going to take a wild guess and say that you got into horseback riding because . . . I dunno, you wanted to be a cowboy?" I asked, grinning.

Dimitri blushed. Like, he actually _blushed._ "Maybe . . ."

"Awwww!" I gushed. "That's adorable, Dimi!"

Shaking his head, he motioned for me to hand him my plate. I did, and he scooped a large helping of scrambled eggs on my plate. He handed it back to me, and I set it on the table. "Got any maple syrup?" I asked.

He raised an eyebrow at me, and looked at me like I was crazy. "Are you serious?"

"Very. I like syrup on my eggs." I replied, shrugging. I thought that by now, he'd be used to my weird ways of eating things.

"That's weird, Rose." he said, handing me the maple syrup out of the fridge.

"Hey, don't knock it till you try it." I squeezed the syrup out, making sure I got every last bit of egg covered in it. I stabbed some egg with my fork and held it up to Dimitri. "Try it."

He looked skeptical, but tried it anyway. I watched his eyes widen in surprise. "Wow."

"It's good, isn't it?" I asked, feeling smug.

"Yes. I never thought that something so weird could taste so good!" he exclaimed. "Hand me the syrup, please."

I burst into laughter as he absolutely _smothered _his eggs in syrup. "Oh God, I've created a monster."

"It'f juvt foooooo good!" he said, his mouth full of egg.

"Dimitri Belikov, don't talk with your mouth full!" I joked. I wasn't one to judge, since I did it all the time.

"Forry, Rova."

I pinched his cheek. "You're adorable, you know that, right?"

He swallowed his food. "Adorable? No. Sexy? I'd like to think so."

I rolled my eyes. "Hurry up and finish your food. You still have to get in the shower before we can go horseback riding."

"Are you trying to tell me that I stink?" he asked, trying to look offended but failing miserably due to the smile that was creeping on to his face.

"Well . . ." I didn't actually think he stunk. "Just kidding. But you do need a shower. You have some _serious_ bed head." I said, ruffling his hair.

"Hmm, I wonder why?" he replied, an mischievous glint in his eyes.

"Yeah, total mystery." I agreed, knowing he was referring to earlier this morning.

We finished our food in silence. I jumped up out of my chair, feeling way better. I put my dishes in the sink and turned to Dimitri, grabbing his dishes and doing the same.

"I'll be five minutes at the most, okay?" he said, wrapping his arms around my waist. He _still _hadn't put a shirt on, not that I was complaining. I liked the view.

"Okay."

He leaned down to peck me on the lips before running upstairs. Moments later, I heard the water running.

Still smiling, I went to sit in the living room. I pulled my phone out of my pocket to text Adrian.

**Hey Adrian :) what's up?**

I had to wait a few minutes before he texted back.

**Hey little dhampir. Not much, just got up.**

I rolled my eyes. Typical Adrian.

**I'm gonna take a wild guess and say that you were thinking about Viktoria all night?**

A few moments later, my phone beeped.

**Maybe . . . have you talked to Viki yet today? Just wondering.**

**No, the whole family (well, other than Dimitri) was gone before I woke up. Something about shopping in Novosibirsk. And Viki? That's too cute :D**

I can just imagine him rolling his eyes.

**Oh :( I see. So she doesn't know that you know yet?**

**No, not yet.**

**Well, you should talk to her when she gets home. Tell her I can't wait to see her tonight.**

**Adrian, if you want to, you can text her on my phone when she gets back. I don't mind.**

**Really? Thanks, Rosie :D**

I gritted my teeth.

**Call me Rosie again, and I might just change my mind. God, what is everyone's obsession with calling me Rosie?**

**Aww, you know that you secretly like it.**

**No, I don't.**

**Yes you do.**

**No.**

**Yes.**

**No.**

**Yes.**

**Yes.**

**No.**

**HAHA! XD**

**Dammit, you tricked me :o**

Just then, Dimitri came out, wearing only a towel. His wet hair stuck to his face, water droplets still glistening.

**Gotta go. Hot Russian in a towel. I'll give Vik my phone later, but no sexting. I'm going horseback riding soon, so it'll be after that. Okay?**

**Dang it, you ruined my plans XD JK, I'd never do that. Have fun with your Russian.**

**See ya, Adrian.**

**See ya Rosalita! HAHA that rhymed!**

I didn't bother texting him , I jumped up off the couch and ran to Dimitri.

"Well, don't you look sexy." I commented.

He rolled his eyes, ignoring the comment. "Who was that you were texting?"

"Adrian." I replied coolly.

"Oh. What did he have to say?"

"Just giving me an update on what's happening back home. They finished moving my stuff out of my room." I lied. Well, it's wasn't completely a lie. I knew from Lissa that they did finish with my stuff.

"That's good." he commented, hugging me to his chest.

"Dimitri, I suggest that you go get dressed, or we're not leaving this house anytime soon."

"Would that be so bad?" he asked sexily.

"Yes, it would. I wanna go horseback riding. Now," I said, turning him towards the stairs. "March up those stairs and get some clothes on that sexy body of yours."

He saluted me. "Sir yes sir!"

I put my hands on my hips. "Uh, I mean, ma'am yes ma'am!"

"That's what I thought. Now go."

Smiling, he walked away. I walked over to wait by the door. Then I looked down at my feet. "Dammit, I need shoes." I ran up the stairs. "Dimitri," I called. "I need shoes. Is it alright if I come in?"

"Sure, Roza." he replied. I made my way down the hall and turned into his bedroom.

He was only wearing boxers and socks. Swallowing hard, I walked over to my suitcase to dig for shoes as he continued to get dressed. "What kind of shoes should I wear?" I asked.

"The sturdiest shoes that you have."

"Um, would Converse work?"

"Yeah, I'm sure they'd be fine."

"Okay!" I replied happily. I grabbed my dark pink high tops that I knew would match my outfit. "Am I dressed appropriately for horseback riding?"

"Yeah, your clothes are perfect."

I turned to him. He now had everything on but his shirt. He was wearing dark wash jeans, and was pulling a dark green t-shirt over his head. Once that was on, he grabbed an elastic off his nightstand and tied his hair back.

"You should probably put your hair up. It's gonna be pretty hot out there." he said.

"Good idea. I need a mirror." I said, grabbing my makeup bag, which contained hair elastics and bobby pins. I walked into the bathroom, put my hair in a low side ponytail, then proceeded to braid my bangs and pin them to the side using two bobby pins.

I walked back into Dimitri's room. "Better?" I asked.

"Well, nothing's better than your hair hanging freely, but you look beautiful."

"Thank you." I said sweetly, bending down to put my shoes on. I tied them in record time, then stood up, pulling my pants up as I did because I had a bit of a plumber's crack.

Taking Dimitri's hand, we walked down the stairs together and out the door. We walked over to the car, got in, and our adventure began.

. . . . . . . . . . . . .

"Dear lord, how far out is this place?" I complained. We'd been driving for a half hour already, and there were no signs of civilization.

"Patience is a virtue."

"Virtue-shmirtue. God, I thought we'd be there by now! Are you sure this place is even in business anymore?"

"Positive. I called before I came down the stairs after my shower."

"Grrrr I hate driving. I just wanna get on a stinking horse and ride away." I said, pouting.

Dimitri turned his head to look at me, smiled, and turned back to the road. He put his aviators—which were perched on top of his head—on and cranked the music.

I can honestly say that in that moment, I would've been thankful to just listen to his crap '80s music. Hell, I'd even settle for country if it meant that I didn't have to listen to this Russian crap that I didn't understand. "God, don't you have any CD's?"

"Nope. We're stuck with this." he replied, trying to repress a smile.

I turned my steely glare on him. "Yeah, right. The day I see you go in _any _car without one of your shitty '80s CD's will probably be the day you die. You're just enjoying my annoyance."

This time, he couldn't hold back his smile. Reaching into the console in-between us, he pulled out a CD. He put it in the CD player of the car, and moments later, the car was flooded with the music of "We're Not Gonna Take It" by Twisted Sister. God, it was bad enough that I knew the name of the song, but it quickly got stuck in my head.

"Can we change the song, comrade? I'll be _so _pissed if this is stuck in my head the rest of the day."

"Fine. Try to find one that you like." he said, handing me the case. It was a mixed CD, one that he burned himself.

I took a look at the list, and groaned.

_We're Not Going To Take It – Twisted Sister  
Uptown Girl – Billy Joel  
You Spin Me Round – Dead or Alive  
The Final Countdown – Europe  
I Ran (So Far Away) – Flock of Seagulls  
I Want To Know What Love Is – Foreigner  
Eye of the Tiger – Survivor  
Rio – Duran Duran  
Wake Me Up Before You Go Go – Wham!  
Tainted Love – Soft Cell  
_

When I the last one on the list, I nearly choked.

_Girls Just Wanna Have Fun – Cyndi Lauper_

"Comrade, I have a question for you." I said, trying to keep the laughter out of my voice.

"What is it?"

"Why is 'Girls Just Wanna Have Fun' on your CD?"

He turned to face me, a blush creeping up his cheeks. "Well . . . it was stuck in my head that day, so I put it on the CD."

"This is just too funny, cowboy." I said, turning it to the last song on the list. The car was filled with the quirky music, and Dimitri groaned. I began singing along, and he soon loosened up enough to join in. What he didn't know was that I was recording it.

When the song finished, I discreetly sent a text to Lissa.

**Yo Liss, you have to hear this. It's the funniest thing ever.**

Before sending it, I attached the recording of Dimitri singing.

Minutes later, she texted me back.

**HAHAHAHAHAHA OMG I ALMOST PEED MYSELF! Why is he singing that? Did he know you were recording it?**

Trying not to laugh and alert Dimitri, I texted her back.

**Not a clue. He's too busy driving to notice much.**

**Oooh where are you guys going? Romantic picnic? Day at the beach?**

Shaking my head, I wrote back.

**No, not today. We're going horseback riding, but holy fuck it's taking forever to get there! We're like, in the middle of nowhere -_-**

**Tsk tsk, Rose. Bad language XD but aww, that sounds fun! Totally jealous. And, you never were one for long car rides, were you?**

**No. Plus, I have to put up with his shitty '80s music, although the 'Girls Just Wanna Have Fun' was pretty hilarious XD**

**Haha what are you listening to now?**

I stopped and listened to the music.

**'Uptown Girl' and uggggh it's soooo annoying :(**

**Aww, I think it's a good song :D**

**You would, Liss. You would. OMG you should go talk to Adrian. I bet he's dying to tell the news to other people.**

**Oooh what news?**

**Not telling. You'll have to talk to him.**

**Pleeeeeeease Rose?**

**Nope.**

**:( meanie.**

**That's why you love me, sis.**

**Yeah, whatever.**

"Roza, we're here." Dimitri said, startling me.

"FINALLY!" I yelled.

**Haha I gotta go, we're FINALLY here.**

**Have fun, Rose :)**

**I will :D**

Dimitri turned the car off, and we got out of the car. The sun was bright, so I grabbed my Ray Bans out of my bag and put them on.

We walked to the stables hand in hand. A short, friendly-looking middle-aged dhampir man suddenly popped out to greet us.

"Dimitri!" he said warmly, with no trace of a Russian accent. Huh.

"Hey, Donnie!" Dimitri replied, reaching out to shake the smaller man's hand.

"My God, how you've grown! I almost didn't recognize you!"

"Well, it's been what, seven years?" Dimitri asked.

"It must be. Who's your little lady friend here?"

Little lady friend? This guy must have a death wish. Dimitri felt my hand tighten in his, and gave me a look that seemed to say _Be nice. _So, I extended my hand to him. "Rose Hathaway."_  
_

"Don Jameson. Call me Donnie."

"It's nice to meet you, Donnie." I replied. I looked at me feet and saw that my shoelace was untied. So, I bent down to tie it, and Donnie gasped. I looked up and saw shock written all over his face. "What? Is my butt-crack showing?" I asked, tying my shoe.

Dimitri, clearly embarrassed by my comment, groaned and covered his face. "Roza . . ."

But then Donnie spoke. "No, it's not that. It's just . . . you have so many marks, and you seem so young . . ."

Without thinking, I reached my hand to the back of my neck. "I have a bit of a reputation back home. It runs in the family." As I spoke, I stood up and brushed myself off.

"That's right! You're Janine Hathaway's daughter!"

"So?" I didn't mean to sound rude, but I probably did.

"So the woman is a _legend_!"

I smiled proudly as I thought of my mother. "Yeah, she is."

"You think that Janine is amazing, but wait till you see Rose." Dimitri commented, making me blush.

"Oh, stop it!" I said, smacking his arm.

"Rose, you know it's true."

"Well, I'm only amazing because you taught me!" I said, trying to shift the spotlight to him.

Donnie's expression turned awed. "Well, if Dimitri trained you, then you must be amazing." Then his brow furrowed. "If Dimitri trained you, then you must be pretty young."

"I just graduated a few days ago."

"Wow. Yeah, you're pretty young then."

I waited for the speech about our age difference, but it never came. He seemed to accept it. We started walking towards the barn.

"Although she's young, she's aged far beyond her years." Dimitri said as we walked.

"Well clearly. Who's your charge?" he asked.

"Lissa—Vasilisa Dragomir."

"Your charge is _Princess Dragomir_?" Donnie asked, his eyes bugging out of his head.

"Charge, best friend . . . she's basically my sister." I smiled as I thought of Lissa.

By now, we were in the barn. As I looked around, my eyes locked on the most beautiful black mare I'd ever seen. Her coat was sleek and shiny, her mane wavy, long and flowing . . .

Donnie, following my gaze, chuckled. "Beautiful, isn't she?"

"Yes . . . what's her name?" I asked, not taking my eyes off of her.

"Callie. Rose, go pat her if you want to. She won't hurt you."

"Are . . . are you sure it's okay?"

"Positive. Go on, walk right up."

Timidly, I walked over to where Callie stood and reached my hand out to pat her gently on the side of her head. "Pretty girl . . . you're such a pretty girl . . ." I cooed in a gentle voice.

She nudged my hand with her nose and whinnied.

"She likes you, Rose." Donnie said, walking up beside me.

"I like her too. Donnie . . . can I ride her?" I asked, staring beseechingly at him.

"Of course." he replied. I wrapped my arms around the mare's neck and hugged her.

"Donnie," Dimitri called. "Where's Alexei?"

Donnie's face fell. "Alexei passed away a few months ago."

Dimitri frowned. "I'm so sorry. I know he was your favourite."

"It's okay . . . at least I still have Callie, Shadow, Aurora, Jade and Eddie."

I kept myself from laughing. A horse named Eddie? But, I knew that now wasn't the time to laugh.

"I remember Shadow! He was just a foal the last time I saw him!" Dimitri exclaimed.

Donnie laughed. "Trust me when I say that he's a big boy now."

"Where is he?" Dimitri asked. I could see that he was happy.

"Right over here. Follow me." Donnie said.

"Roza, you coming?" Dimitri asked.

I shook my head. "I think I'll stay with Callie."

Dimitri smiled. "Okay." With that, he and Donnie walked away to find Shadow.

I put a hand on Callie's muzzle. "You're so pretty, Callie."

Suddenly, her head popped up and she licked my face. "Ewww! Callie, you silly girl!" I tapped her head gently, and ducked away.

She snorted at me, then followed me.

We continued playing around like that until Dimitri and Donnie came back out, Dimitri leading a beautiful white stallion and Donnie leading a chestnut brown mare.

"Is that Shadow?" I asked Dimitri.

"Yes, it is." he replied, scratching the stallion's neck.

I laughed. "He doesn't look like a Shadow."

Donnie laughed. "He was darker when he was a baby." he explained.

"Oh. Makes sense. Who's the other horse?"

"This is Jade." he replied.

"She's beautiful." I commented.

"I know she is. She's my most prized mare." he spoke in an affectionate tone, and looked adoringly at Jade. "I'm just about to let her out in the field. Dimitri, could you tie Shadow up beside Callie and go grab Aurora? And Rose, could you grab Eddie?"

"Of course." Dimitri and I replied at the same time. He led Shadow over to where Callie and I stood, and tied him beside her. Donnie led Jade out, and Dimitri led me to where the other two horses were.

When we walked out, I saw two large, beautiful horses. Dimitri pointed to the grey one. "That's Aurora. Donnie told me that she's Alexei's daughter."

"Who's the mother?"

"Jade."

"Oh. So I'm guessing that this is Eddie?" I asked, pointing to a brown and white paint horse.

Dimitri laughed. "Yes, that's Eddie. You should take a picture of him and send it to your friend Eddie."

"I should!" I exclaimed. I pulled my phone out of my pocket, snapped a picture of Eddie the horse, and sent it to Eddie.

I got a text back. It was Eddie.

**Uh, Rose? Why did you send me a picture of a horse?**

**Because, my friend, that horse's name is Eddie.**

**Really? Sweet!**

**Haha yeah, I know. I laughed when I found out. Just thought I'd send you that pic. Peace out, I'm going horseback riding.**

**Have fun! Oh, and I'm totally setting that pic as my background picture XD**

Laughing, I put my phone back in my pocket. "So . . . I just grab that rope thing and lead him out?" I asked Dimitri.

"Yes, Roza. It's easy. Just make clicking noises to get him going." he walked up to Aurora, grabbed her lead, made the clicking noise he told me about, and she followed him right out.

_This should be easy, _I told myself. I walked right up to Eddie, grabbed his lead, made the clicking noise, and gave him a little tug. I started walking, but stopped. Well, I didn't stop, more like I was stopped.

Eddie hadn't budged. "Come on, Eddie." I said, then made the clicking noise again. Still no movement. I tugged on the lead, and he stamped his foot. "Eddie," I warned. "Come on." All he did was snort at me and stamp his foot again. "Dear God, you're worse than me!"

"Roza?" I heard Dimitri call.

"Coming! I'm just . . . bonding with Eddie." I called back.

"Okay, well hurry."

"I will."

I walked right up to Eddie and looked him in the eyes. "Come on, boy. Please?"

He nudged my hand with his nose.

"Oh, you want me to pat you?" I asked. He grunted, and I took that for a yes. So, reaching up slowly, I put my hand on his muzzle and rubbed. He whinnied at me, and I took it as a good sign.

I moved my hand to his mane, and I stroked it gently.

After a minute, I decided to try again. "Come on, boy, come on!" I said, then made the clicking noise and gave a little tug. He slowly started walking, and I jumped for joy.

Finally, I led him out into the field. Donnie looked shocked.

"I'm amazed. I can't believe you managed to get him out!" Donnie exclaimed.

"Wait, you knew he'd be that stubborn?" I asked, my mouth falling open with a pop.

"Of course! He's the most stubborn horse that I have. How did you get him out?"

"I petted him for a minute."

"Rose, you're a natural. I know you'll do fine with Callie."

Then, I smiled. Pulling Eddie with me, I walked over to hug Donnie. He seemed surprised, but soon hugged me back. "Thank you." I whispered in his ear.

"No problem. Now go, Dimitri will help you get Callie ready."

"Okay." I detached the lead from Eddie's halter, and handed it to Donnie. As I turned to walk away, Eddie nudged my back, making me fall flat on my face. I rolled over to glare at him, as he whinnied his little horse laugh and shook his head. "Eddie." I said menacingly. He stopped immediately and looked at me. "Get over here and help me up."

Snorting, he trotted over and dipped his head down so that I could grab his halter. He pulled me up with his head, and I petted him. "You little devil." I said affectionately, poking him. He just whinnied, then galloped away to join Jade and Aurora.

"Not a word." I warned Donnie, who looked like he was going to piss himself. I grabbed Dimitri's hand and walked into the stable to where Shadow and Callie were nuzzling eachother.

"Rose, that was—"

"Not a word. I don't wanna hear how funny it was." I said, cutting Dimitri off.

"I was going to say amazing, but it was funny. You have to admit it."

I glared at him, and he shrunk back.

"It was amazing, though. Donnie's right; you are a natural."

"Why, thank you, cowboy."

He rolled his eyes and walked over to what I assumed was the room where all the horse equipment was. I followed him.

"Grab that saddle and blanket." he said, pointing to a black saddle that was resting on a light pink saddle blanket.

"Okay." I went over to grab it, and almost fell. "Holy shit, this thing's heavy!"

Dimitri chuckled. "Yes, they usually are. Now, take it out and put it on Callie's back."

"Nah, I thought I was supposed to put it on her head." Sarcasm dripped from my voice.

"Well, maybe you did." he said jokingly. Shaking my head, I walked over to Callie. As gently as I could, I set it on her back. I bent down to latch it, and tightened it just enough so that it would stay on. I saw Dimitri do the same with Shadow, the bright red saddle blanket standing out against his white coat.

Dimitri walked back to the equipment room, carrying the bridles and two riding helmets. He handed me a bridle and a helmet, then walked over to Shadow.

Since I had no idea how to put the bridle on Callie, I thought I'd watch Dimitri put it on Shadow. It looked easy enough, so I mimicked exactly what he did, and surprisingly got it on right.

Dimitri came over to inspect my work, and smiled. "You got it all perfect, Roza. Good job."

"Thanks, Dimi!" I beamed. I guess I really was a natural with horses. The thought made me smile.

"Ready to go out?" Dimitri asked.

"As ready as I'll ever be." I turned to pat Callie. "Are you ready, girl?" I asked her. She whinnied in response.

I walked over to her side, put my foot in the stirrup, and hoisted myself up on her back. I got myself settled comfortably, then watched as Dimitri did the same. As usual, he looked graceful.

"Let's go around the field a few times just so that you can get used to the different gaits." Dimitri said.

"Good idea. Now . . . how do I get her to go?" I asked.

"Just give her a tap on the side with your heels and make that clicking noise."

I gripped her reins tightly, and did as I was told.

Callie started walking, and I smiled widely. Yeah, I'm good. Ask me, I'll tell you.

When we walked out to the field, followed by Dimitri and Shadow, I decided to take it up a notch. Tapping her sides, I urged her into a trot. I bounced a little, but not much.

Suddenly, Dimitri whirred past me, Shadow in a gallop.

I petted Callie's mane. "Girl, I'm going to trust you, okay? I hope I don't fall . . ." I said. Taking a deep breath, I said, "Go!" and dug my heels into her side. With a whinny, she set off galloping. I bounced uncontrollably for a minute, panicking, before I remembered that I was supposed to move with the horse. So, calming myself, I found my rhythm and was off.

Callie was an incredibly fast horse. We caught up to Dimitri and Shadow in no-time at all.

"Hey cowboy." I said, right before Callie and I overtook them.

"Oh, it's on!" Dimitri called. I peeked behind me, seeing Dimitri and Shadow steadily catching up.

"Callie, time to kick it into overdrive." I said, gripping the reins tighter. She obviously understood me, because she sped up. We whizzed past Donnie, who was whooping with joy.

"You're a natural, Rose! A natural!" he shouted.

As we went around again, I tugged on the reins to slow her down. I wanted to ride beside Dimitri.

When he got closer, he started slowing down. I slowed Callie to a trot, and soon, Dimitri was trotting beside me.

"Rose . . . wow. That was one of the most amazing things I've ever seen!" he exclaimed.

"I agree. It was amazing! The wind in my hair, the connection to Callie . . . it was great."

"I think you're ready to go to the trails in the woods."

"Awesome!" I cried, rubbing Callie's glistening neck.

"Follow me." he said, steering Shadow towards the gate. "Donnie!" he called. "Can you open the gate?"

"Of course!" Donnie shouted in reply.

Seconds later, we were at the gates. Donnie slid them open, and we walked through. "Rose." Donnie said.

"Yes?"

"You were great out there."

"Aww! Thanks, Donnie!"

Smiling, he closed the gate.

Dimitri led us to the woods, where a trail was visible. "We can go in here and ride around. There's a beach at the other edge of the forest."

"Sounds good to me, comrade."

We had the horses walking side by side, and we walked in silence for a few moments.

I broke the silence. "I'm sorry about Alexei, Dimitri."

He shrugged. "It's okay. I mean, I miss him and all, but I'll be fine."

"Yeah . . . so do you like Shadow?"

"I do. He's just like Alexei, well, except for the colour."

"He's a beautiful horse." I said.

Dimitri smiled at me. "Yeah, he is. So is Callie."

"She's such a pretty girl." I cooed, stroking her flowing mane.

"One of the prettiest I've ever seen. She was a cute foal."

"You saw her when she was a baby?" I asked.

"No, I only saw a picture. Donnie was telling me that he sold her father, and her mother, Bailey, died last year."

"Poor girl. How old is she?"

"She's six." he replied.

"I see. Dimitri . . . this may sound weird, but when I ride Callie, I feel like I'm at home. It feels right."

"Believe me, I feel the same. I'm glad to be riding a horse again."

"I don't know how you stayed away from it for so long! What are we going to do once we get to Pennsylvania?" I asked. My face fell as I realized that I was going to have to leave Callie.

"I don't know. We'll find somewhere to go, don't worry."

"I'm gonna be sad to leave Callie." I said quietly, petting her flank.

"I know you are. I'm gonna be sad to leave Shadow, too."

We rode in silence again, until I decided to gallop ahead. "Go!" I shouted, and Callie took off like a comet.

Dimitri and Shadow galloped up beside us, and Dimitri laughed.

"It's so exhilarating!" I shouted, feeling giddy.

"I know!" Dimitri agreed, a huge smile on his face.

The only sound we heard was the pounding of hooves on the ground, and it was comforting.

We rode through a small brook, the water only coming halfway up the horses' legs.

Soon enough, I noticed the forest opening up, and we rode out on to a small beach. The ground was rocky beneath the horses' feet, and we rode over to the water.

I dismounted Callie so that I could walk around for a minute. I didn't want numb-bum. Dimitri followed suit, and walked over to me, Shadow following behind him.

He picked me up and spun me around before kissing me passionately.

"You're so amazing, Roza."

"Thanks." I replied breathlessly. The things this man does to me!

"Seeing you ride Callie . . . it took my breath away. You ride like you've been doing it for years, rather than less than an hour."

I looked over to where the horses were frolicking in the water. I smiled and laughed as I watched them play. "I don't know what it is about horses. I just love it."

"I know. I love it too." he said, pulling me closer. I wrapped my arms around him as he squeezed me tightly, resting his chin on my head.

"We're coming back before we leave, right?" I asked, my voice sounding hopeful.

"If you want to, Rose."

"Of course I want to!" I exclaimed. "I love the horses."

"Okay, love."

We split apart and walked over to the horses. They stood side by side, and it was too cute. I reached over to pet Shadow, and he whinnied and shook his head. "You're a good boy, aren't you?"

He snorted, and nudged Callie, whom Dimitri was petting.

I rubbed his muzzle. "You like her, don't you?"

He whinnied again. "I'll put in a good word for you." I whispered. Then I turned to Dimitri. "Do you wanna go now?"

"Sure, Rose."

I walked over and mounted Callie, petting her neck once I was up. "Ready, girl?"

She snorted and stamped her foot.

Once Dimitri was up on Shadow, we were off.

. . . . . . . . . . . . .

When we got back to the barn, the sky had darkened considerably. We were out for hours, so I wasn't surprised.

Callie was panting by the time I got her in and took the saddle and bridle off of her.

"Roza, can you take the saddle and bridle off of Shadow for me? I'm going to get them some food and water." Dimitri said.

"Sure. I'll do it right after I put Callie's stuff away."

"Okay." he replied, walking away.

When Callie's stuff was put away neatly, I grabbed her halter and walked out. I put it on her, then walked over to Shadow. I took his bridle and saddle off of him, put them away, grabbed his halter, then walked back out and put it on him. I put them in separate stalls, then Dimitri returned with a bag of oats and some water for them.

After he gave them their oats and water, he walked over to me and wrapped his arms around my waist from behind me. I leaned my head back to rest on his chest and sighed in content.

"Thank you for the great day, Dimitri. I had fun." I said, turning to face him.

"You're very welcome, Roza. I had fun too." He pressed a kiss to my forehead, then rested his chin on my head.

We stayed like that for a few minutes before hearing a gruff throat clearing. We both jumped, but then we realized that it was just Donnie.

"Am I interrupting something?" Donnie asked, chuckling.

"Not at all." Dimitri replied, smiling at the smaller man.

"I was wondering if you two wanted a drink." he said.

Until then, I hadn't noticed how thirsty I was. "A drink would be nice." I told him.

"Well, follow me then." he said, walking away.

We followed him, Dimitri's arm around my waist and my head resting on his arm. He led us to a small, cozy looking house.

When we stepped inside, I smiled. There were knick-knacks everywhere, as well as random old posters of little sayings. Very Donnie.

He led us to a small kitchen, and motioned for us to sit down. There were only two chairs, so I sat on Dimitri's lap.

"What would you like to drink?" Donnie asked.

"Got any apple juice?" I asked.

"Sure do. You about you, Dimitri?"

"Just water for me, Donnie."

"Coming right up."

Seconds later, a glass of apple juice was set in front of me, followed by a glass of water. Dimitri reached for his water and took a sip, while I downed all of my apple juice.

I sighed contentedly. "Now that's some good apple juice."

Dimitri shook his head, laughing. "You're infatuated with apple juice, aren't you?"

"I think I might love it more than I love you, Dimi." I replied.

"We've already been through this, Roza. There's nothing that you love more than me."

"Oh, that's right! Totally slipped my mind." I joked.

"You two are a riot." Donnie commented, looking amused by our bantering.

"Don't I know it, Donnie." Dimitri replied.

"So, any chance I might get to see Rose Hathaway in action?" Donnie asked.

I looked at Dimitri, and he shrugged. "Sure, Donnie-boy." I replied. "Where can we spar?"

"Is the grass outside okay?" he asked.

"That's fine." Dimitri assured him.

So, after Dimitri finished off his water, we all walked outside and found a good patch of grass to spar on.

We got into our defensive stances. "Don't hold back." I warned Dimitri.

"Never." he replied.

We circled, waiting for the other to make a move.

Finally, he lunged, trying to wrap his arms around my waist, but I quickly sidestepped him and lashed out with my foot. It connected with the back of his leg, and he stumbled, but quickly straightened up.

"Come on, comrade. You can do better than that."

Grunting, he went to punch my arm, which I dodged, but I didn't realize that he kicked out at the same time. His foot hit my shin, and I almost fell.

"Son of a bitch." I muttered. I aimed a roundhouse kick at him, and he couldn't dodge it before it hit his chest. I heard the _whoosh! _as his breath was knocked out of him. He tumbled down, and I was on top of him.

With a triumphant grin, I tapped him forcefully over the heart, showing that he was 'dead.'

I heard Donnie clapping before he came over to help me up. I was breathing heavily, and grabbed his hand to get up. Then, I reached down to grab Dimitri's hand and help him up, but he pulled me back down on top of him. He wrapped his arms tightly around my waist, and I couldn't get up, no matter how much I struggled.

"Dimitri Belikov, let me up!" I shrieked.

"Sorry Roza, but I can't do that."

"Asswipe." I growled.

"Love you too!" he said in a singsong voice. He finally released me, and I stood up, brushing the dirt off my clothes. Donnie reached down to help him up.

"Well Donnie, I think it's time Rose and I got back. I don't really want to be out after dark."

"Strigoi." he guessed.

Dimitri nodded. "You don't even know the half of it." he replied, shivering.

"Well, come back soon then. You can just go right in and grab the horses if you want." Donnie said.

"That would be great!" I exclaimed, going over to hug him. "Thanks for having us, Donnie."

"It was my pleasure, kiddo."

"Watch it." I growled.

"Easy there, Rose. Just kidding."

"I know." I replied sweetly.

I began to walk towards the car, and I faintly heard Donnie talking to Dimitri. "She's a keeper, Dimitri. You don't want to let her go."

"I know. See you soon, Donnie."

"See you, kid."

I got in the car, and moments later, so did Dimitri. "I like him." I told Dimitri.

"I do too. He's a good guy."

He started the car, and we started our long drive back.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . .

When we got back, it was about 5 o'clock. The rest of the Belikovs still weren't back yet, so we went to the living room and sat down.

Dimitri sat on the end and held his arm up so that I could curl up beside him. He wrapped his arm around me and grabbed a blanket to cover both of us. He then turned the TV on, and thankfully, they had satellite so we got a few American channels.

I yawned loudly, and Dimitri chuckled. "Sleep, Roza. It's been a long day."

"That it has, cowboy. Sleep sounds pretty good right now."

"I love you, Rose."

"I love you too, Dimitri."

I closed my eyes, and Dimitri's arms tightened around me. Minutes later, I was out like a light, aware even in sleep that Dimitri was there with me.

**Viktoria POV**

When we all got back from Novosibirsk, we found Rose and Dimitri curled up on the couch, both fast asleep.

"Look at that. They're adorable, aren't they?" Mama said, smiling fondly at them.

"They are." Karolina agreed.

"I wonder what they did while we were out." Sonya asked.

I, for one, did _not _want to know what they did. I had a good guess, and it grossed me out.

"Should we wake them up?" I asked.

"No, leave them." Babushka said.

"Okay." I replied. "I'm going to put my new clothes away."

"Okay, Vika. Supper will be ready in a half hour." Mama said.

"Gotcha."

I ran up the stairs, lugging my shopping bags with me. Shopping in Novosibirsk was always the best, because they had a great shopping centre.

All day, I thought of Adrian. His eyes. His laugh. His smile. The sound of his voice. I couldn't wait to see him again tonight!

After I put my clothes away, I hopped on my bed and grabbed my iPod. I listened that for a few minutes before I heard a knock on my door.

"Come in." I called.

The door opened, revealing a sleepy looking Rose. "Hey, _Viki_." She said, grinning at me.

"Hey, Rose." I said, giving her a weird look.

"Did you, I dunno, have any good dreams last night?"

My eyes widened. "You know!"

"Adrian dreamwalked me after!" she said, jumping on my bed and sitting beside me. She grabbed my hands and we squealed happily. "You have no idea how happy you've made him, Vik."

"Really?" I asked.

"If only you knew. He was so hooked on me, and I was with Dimitri, so he was pretty miserable. But when he dreamwalked me last night, he was the happiest I've seen him in months."

My heart swelled with joy. "Well, I'm happy to be of service."

She pulled her phone out of her pocket. "He wants you to text him." she said, putting her phone in my hand. I closed my fingers around it and hugged her tightly.

"Thank you, Rose. You're the best!"

"I know I am." she replied jokingly.

Then, my face turned serious. "You can't tell Dimitri. Not yet."

"I know. And, I think I can get Adrian here."

It took a minute before her words sunk in. "Here? In Baia?"

"No, Viktoria. On the moon." she said, rolling her eyes. "Yes, here in Baia!"

"Wouldn't it be suspicious if it was just Adrian that came?" I asked.

A mischievous smile was on her face. "Yes. That's why Lissa and Christian would be coming as well."

Once again, I threw my arms around her. "Thank you! Thank you thank you thank you!" I cried. Then, I got a whiff of her. "Rose, you smell like horse."

"That's because Dimitri and I went horseback riding today." she said, grinning.

"Really?" I asked.

"Yep. We went to Donnie's stable." she replied.

"Awesome! I go there all the time! Are you guys going back?"

"Of course! I bonded with Callie." I saw a huge smile spread across her lips as she thought of the horse.

"Yeah, she's a good horse, isn't she?"

"I love her." Rose replied. Oh no, she got attached to Callie. She'll be heartbroken when she leaves.

"That's . . . good." I said, smiling at her. "Anyways . . . how would you get them here? Where would they stay?"

"I need to talk to your mother about that. I was hoping they could stay here. Otherwise, Dimitri and I would have to stay at a hotel with them because we can't leave our charges or Adrian unprotected."

"Well, I'll do my best to help convince Mama."

"Good, because I can't do this alone."

I smiled. "So . . . is Adrian as good looking outside of a dream as he is in a dream?"

She thought about it for a moment. "He's definitely cuter in person."

I grinned. "So tell me more about him."

"Well, you probably won't like this, because I know I don't, but he drinks and smokes."

I frowned. "Why?"

"It helps keep spirit's darkness away. I don't approve, but I'd rather he did that instead of go crazy."

"Yeah, me too." I said, shivering.

"Girls! Supper's ready!" Mama called.

"Do you know how to use my phone?" Rose asked me.

"Yeah, I'll manage."

"Good. Text him."

"I will."

With that said, we walked downstairs for supper.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

**Rose POV**

After we ate supper, we all headed to the living room to watch a movie. They didn't have any english ones, so I settled for english subtitles.

I smiled discreetly as I saw Viktoria texting on my phone. It was just so cute!

About halfway through the movie, I felt Lissa's fear through the bond. I felt panic, and all the colour drained from my face. Dimitri noticed.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"Lissa." Was all I said before I went into her head. I could see that she was in a parking lot, and after a little digging, I found that it was the parking lot at the airport.

Lissa was crying and leaning over Christian's body. I saw bite marks on his neck. I also noticed that his arm was broken.

"Adrian!" she cried. "Help Eddie!"

Her gaze shifted to Eddie, who was unconscious on the ground, a crying Mia hovering over him. She looked back to Christian, who groaned.

"Are you okay, Liss?" he croaked.

"I'm fine, Christian. I'm worried about you."

Christian coughed. "Don't be. I'm fine."

"You are not!" Lissa shrieked. "Your arm is broken, idiot!"

"Oh. That's why it hurts so much." he replied.

"I'm gonna heal you, okay?"

"No, Liss. Don't waste your energy."

"It's not a waste, Christian! I'm not taking no for an answer."

"Lissa . . ."

"No." she said, resting her hand gently on his arm. I felt the golden magic flare up through the bond, and his arm was healed. Then, she rested her arm on his neck and healed the bite marks too.

What I saw wasn't important. It was what I _felt._ Dark feelings stirred in Lissa's mind, and though I knew I shouldn't have, I pulled them into myself. I felt my body shudder, and I pulled out of her head.

**Dimitri POV**

I saw Rose shudder, and then her blank eyes came alive again. I was about to ask her what happened, but her expression was filled with fury and she jumped up off the couch and ran out the back door.

"Crap!" I yelled, getting up and following her. "Rose!" I called. I vaguely heard my family following me, but I didn't stop them. I was too worried about Rose. "Roza!" I shouted. I ran out the door and followed her to the backyard.

I saw her turn back to face me, and her eyes looked black. "Don't follow me."

I kept going, and she growled. "Dimitri, stay away."

"No. Roza, it's not you. Come on, Roza! Fight it!"

"It is me!" she shouted, turning to run.

I grabbed her arm. "Roza—" I was cut off by her fist connecting with my right cheek. She pulled her arm back, ready to punch me again, but I grabbed her arm and pinned her down on the ground, her arms behind her back.

"Let me GO!" she snarled.

"No. Not until you calm down. Roza, it's the darkness. Let it go. It's not you. _It's not you!_" I cried, a tear sliding down my face. I was terrified for her.

She shuddered again, and stopped struggling. "Dimitri . . ." she whispered. I felt her body shaking with the tears that she was shedding.

Slowly, I pulled her up on my lap. She buried her face in my chest and cried. She was sobbing violently. "Shh . . . shh Roza, it's okay."

"No it's not." she whispered.

"Tell me what happened, honey." I said in a soothing voice.

"They were at the airport and they were attacked . . . Christian and Eddie got hurt . . . Lissa healed Christian and then I . . . I pulled the darkness out of Lissa and . . . I lost it." she said between sobs.

"Shh . . . it's okay now. They're all okay, and you're okay."

"I hate it when this happens!" she yelled, hitting the ground weakly.

"I know, I know . . . I do too, Roza. But you beat it. I knew you could."

"I wouldn't have if you weren't here." she said quietly. She looked me in the eyes, and reached her hand up to caress my cheek. "I'm so sorry that I punched you, Dimitri. I didn't mean to." she sobbed. Fresh tears fell down her face.

"Roza, it's okay. I'm fine." I assured her. I got up, and picked her up with me. As I held her in my arms, I saw how much the darkness got to her.

I carried her back into the house where my family sat, looking anxious. I knew that they had been watching from the window.

Viktoria walked up to us. "Rose . . . are you okay?"

Unable to speak, she just nodded. She motioned for me to put her down, and when I did, she threw her arms around Viktoria and sobbed.

"I'm so . . . sorry that you . . . all had to . . . see that." she choked out between the violent sobs coming from her body. Viktoria patted her back soothingly, and stared at me. "What just happened?" she mouthed.

"Spirit." I mouthed back.

A look of understanding crossed Viktoria's face as she rubbed Rose's back. "Shh Rose, it's okay." She pulled Rose over to the couch as Mama got up and walked over to me.

"Dimitri, can I talk to you in the kitchen?" she asked.

"Sure." I replied. We walked to the kitchen, and she turned to me, a look of concern on her face.

"Are you okay?" she asked me, putting a hand on my cheek. I brushed it away.

"I'm fine, Mama. It's Rose that I'm worried about."

"What happened?"

"I guess Lissa and the rest of Rose's friends were attacked by Strigoi and Lissa's boyfriend Christian got hurt. Lissa healed him, and Rose absorbed the darkness. She's been absorbing too much lately, and I guess she just snapped."

"That's horrible!" she cried.

I nodded, my face grim. "I know. It terrifies me when it happens, Mama."

My mother pulled me into a hug, and until that moment, I hadn't realized just how much I needed a hug from her. I wrapped my arms around her small body.

"Dimka, you can help her through this. Rose is strong, but she needs you to be strong too."

"I know. It's just hard sometimes."

"If something is hard, then you know it's worth fighting for." she said wisely.

"You're starting to sound like Babushka." I joked.

Mama sighed. "I think I've been around her too much."

Just then, Rose walked into the kitchen. "Dimitri . . . there you are. I'm not interrupting anything, am I?"

"No, sweetie, you're not. How are you?" Mama asked, looking concerned.

"Better. Sorry if I scared you." Rose said, looking down at her feet.

Mama walked over to her and hugged her. "Don't apologize for something that you had no control over."

Rose smiled at her. "Thank you for being so accepting, Olena. You have no idea how much it means to me."

"No problem, Rose. Now, I think that you should call your friend and see if she's okay."

"I can't. Her phone's off, and she's boarding the plane soon. Plus, I know that she's okay." she said, tapping her head.

"She'll probably call you when she gets to Pennsylvania anyway." I told her.

"Yeah, probably." she agreed.

"How about we go back out to the living room and finish watching the movie?" Mama suggested.

"Sounds good to me." Rose said.

"Me too." I agreed.

Without another word, we all walked back out to the living room and finished the movie like nothing happened.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . .

When the movie finished, Rose was fast asleep. It didn't surprise me; after horseback riding and her little stint with darkness, she was left pretty exhausted. I was pretty tired myself.

Picking her up gently as to not wake her up, I turned to my family. "I'm going to put her to bed. We're both tired from horseback riding today."

"Goodnight, Dimka." my family said in unison.

"Goodnight."

I walked up the stairs slowly, trying not to jostle Rose. Once I got to my bedroom, I laid her down gently on the bed. I went to her suitcase to grab her some pajama bottoms. I grabbed the first ones that I saw, which were dark purple polar fleece. I pulled her jeans off and slipped her pajama bottoms on, and she didn't wake up. I smiled indulgently at her, and ran my finger over her cheek.

"You have to protect her." Babushka's voice came from behind me, making me jump.

"You scared me, Babushka. What are you talking about?"

"You have to protect her." she repeated, her eyes boring into mine.

I cocked an eyebrow at her. "Why wouldn't I protect her?"

"I'm not doubting you, Dimka. But you need to understand that something unbelievable is happening and you _really _have to take care of her."

I pinched the bridge of my nose. "Babushka, for once in your life, could you not be so cryptic? Help me out here, because I don't understand."

"For crying out loud, Dimka! Has living in America made you dumb? Think about my words carefully. Remember what I told you the other night?" she asked.

"Yes. You said something about it not being only our lives that we have to worry abo—" Then it dawned on me. But . . . it couldn't be. "Babushka, you don't mean—"

"I mean exactly what I say. You two are special; true soul mates in every sense of the word. It's only ever happened once before, and it was hundreds of years ago. People forget."

I swallowed hard, still trying to process this new information. "But Babushka, Rose can't be . . . pregnant. It's not possible."

"Dimka, you need to realize that some things that we once thought were impossible aren't so impossible."

"I'm just . . . well, I'm in shock."

Babushka smiled. "I know you are. But trust me, everything will turn out okay."

"Thank you, Babushka. Should I . . . should I tell Rose?" I asked.

"I'll leave that up to you." she replied, then walked away.

As I changed into my pajama bottoms, I thought about what I'd just learned. Rose was pregnant. I was going to be a father. The thought brought a smile to my face.

When I knew that I wanted to be with Rose, I'd accepted the fact that I was never going to be a father. It saddened me, but I loved Rose so much that I didn't care.

But now . . . I couldn't be happier. I was going to have everything I'd ever wanted.

Even though I was happy, I still had my worries. Rose was still young. What if she wasn't ready for a family? It scared me to think about that.

Sighing, I turned off the light and curled up next to my Roza. Without even thinking about it, my hand automatically went to rest on her stomach. I saw her smile in her sleep, and she wiggled closer to me. I kissed her cheek, and she sighed.

"Goodnight, my beautiful Rose." I whispered, before closing my eyes and falling asleep, tightening my arm around her stomach.

**There you go! So Dimitri and Adrian know, but Rose is still clueless. Should Dimitri tell her? Or should he let her find out on her own? **

**The poll on my profile is still open, but I'm pretty sure that I know what I'm going to do. I'm not telling you guys yet though :) you'll all have to wait until we get there in the story! I'm evil, I know :)**

**I hope that everyone had a great Christmas and a great New Year :D I consider this extra long chapter a late Christmas and New Year present to all of you, so don't expect more chapters that are this long. Well, maybe, but don't count on it :)**

**Until next time!**

**Remember, Review & Vote! Oh, and tell me if you think that Dimitri should tell Rose or not :)**


	19. Chapter 20

**A/N: Hey everyone! I got some great responses from the last chapter! I got 19 reviews that I didn't even have to ask for :D you guys are the best! This chapter is pretty long, almost 11000 words! I guess I couldn't stop myself :P but, you guys don't mind that at all, do you? XD I hope you all like this chapter, I love it!**

**Disclaimer: As always, I don't own VA or it's characters. Or any songs I may use in this story :P**

Enjoy the chapter! Sarah :)

**CHAPTER** Seventeen

**Viktoria POV**

After Dimitri took Rose upstairs to go to bed, Babushka followed them. Even though I wasn't tired, I'd decided that I wanted to go to bed, since the faster I went to sleep, the faster I would see Adrian.

I faked a yawn. "Mama, I'm tired. I think I'm going to go to bed as well."

Mama smiled. "Goodnight, my dear Vika."

I walked upstairs with a smile on my face. It was great to have a mother like mine.

When I got to the top of the stairs, I heard the voices of Dimitri and Babushka.

Dimitri sounded frustrated. "Babushka, for once in your life, could you not be so cryptic? Help me out here, because I don't understand."

Babushka's shrill voice answered him. "For crying out loud, Dimka! Has living in America made you dumb? Think about my words carefully. Remember what I told you the other night?"

"Yes. You said something about it not being only our lives that we have to worry abo—" I heard his sharp intake of breath. "Babushka, you don't mean—"

But Babushka cut him off. "I mean exactly what I say. You two are special; true soul mates in every sense of the word. It's only ever happened once before, and it was hundreds of years ago. People forget."

What in the world were they talking about?

When Dimitri spoke next, my question was answered. "But Babushka, Rose can't be . . . pregnant. It's not possible."

I felt my mouth pop open, and possibly drop to the floor. Rose was pregnant?

"Dimka, you need to realize that some things that we once thought were impossible aren't so impossible." Babushka replied softly.

"I'm just . . . well, I'm in shock." Dimitri replied, sounding awed.

"I know you are. But trust me, everything will turn out okay."

"Thank you, Babushka. Should I . . . should I tell Rose?"

"I'll leave that up to you." And then she walked out. As she walked by me, she whispered, "It's not nice to eavesdrop."

I grabbed her arm. "I didn't mean to . . . Babushka, is it really true? Is Rose pregnant?"

But she didn't answer me. Instead, she winked, and walked away. What the hell was that supposed to mean?

Sighing, I walked through the door in my room and shut it behind me. I laid on my bed to think of what I'd just learned.

How could she be pregnant? It's just not possible! But then, Babushka's words came back to me. _You need to realize that some things that we once thought were impossible aren't so impossible. _Maybe Babushka was right. After all, she'd never been wrong before.

Suddenly, my pocket vibrated, scaring the poo out of me. Crap. I forgot to give Rose her phone back. I pulled it out of my pocket to see the message. I saw that I'd missed two before the one I'd just gotten.

**I can't wait to see you either :)**

**Viki? You there?**

**Hellooooo?**

Smiling, I texted Adrian back.

**Sorry about that, Adri :P I didn't feel the phone go off.**

**Haha it's alright, my dear. What's up?**

I bit my lip. _Should I tell him?_ I asked myself.

**Just learned some crazy shit :S**

Minutes later, the phone vibrated again.

**And what is said crazy shit?**

**Well . . . I guess Rose is pregnant.**

There. I said it.

**I WAS RIGHT :D When she told me what your grandmother told her, I guessed immediately, and now I know!**

My eyes widened. He knew?

**Well. What do you think about it?**

**I think it's great! Your brother is probably over the moon :)**

**Yeah, probably :P**

**LOL :P How's Rose? Is she happy about it?**

**Uh, about that . . . Rose doesn't know.**

**WHAAAAT? Are you serious?**

**Very. I don't even think that I'm supposed to know, because I might have been eavesdropping on Babushka and Dimka talking . . .**

**Wow. Rose is gonna be PISSED that she's one of the last to know XD**

**I know . . . I'm not sure if Dimka's going to tell her or not. I hope he does, because, well, she's carrying the baby.**

I yawned then, starting to get tired.

**Yeah, I agree.**

**Well, I think I'll go to bed now. I'm tired :P**

**I'll be waiting, my sweet :)**

**See ya in probably a few minutes. I have a talent for falling asleep quickly XD**

**Okay XD see ya!**

Smiling, I tucked Rose's phone under my pillow and got my pajamas on.

As I covered myself up with my blanket and settled down, I thought of Adrian and how I'd see him soon. It was good motivation, because I was asleep within minutes.

I found myself in my room. I looked down, and saw that I was wearing a sky blue halter neck summer dress. It was beautiful!

"This must be your room." Adrian said from behind me. Whirling around, I saw that he sat on my bed, looking around my room.

"Yeah . . . if I would've known that we'd be here, I would've cleaned up a little." I replied, blushing.

He stood up and walked over to me. He reached up to stroke my cheek, and I closed my eyes. "Don't worry," he whispered. "My room looks a lot worse."

"Good to know." I murmured. "So . . . I heard about what happened at the airport. Is everyone okay?"

"You heard? But how—right. Rose."

"Yeah . . ." I grimaced.

"What?" he asked.

"Rose had a little bout with spirit darkness. She punched Dimka right in the face when he went after her." I explained, still grimacing.

Adrian frowned. "But Lissa didn't use that much magic."

I sighed. "I guess it's been building up and she just cracked."

Adrian slapped his face with his hand. "Crap! I shouldn't have let Lissa heal Christian. I should have done it myself."

I put my hand on his arm. "But wouldn't that mean that you'd get the darkness?"

"Yes, but Rose is pregnant, and I sort of knew that. I guess I panicked so much that I didn't think."

I wrapped my arms around him instinctively. "Don't blame yourself. It's not your fault. Rose is okay now, and so is everyone else."

His arms went around my back, and he relaxed. "I know . . . I just feel bad."

"Don't worry about it. Now . . . what exactly happened?" I asked, wanting to know every detail.

"Well, we got out of the van at the airport, and when we were walking, three Strigoi ambushed us. One lunged at Lissa, but Christian killed it with fire. I grabbed Mia and Lissa and pulled them up against a wall, while Eddie fought two off. He killed one, and then one snuck up behind Christian and bit him. Eddie killed the other one that he was fighting and ran over to help Christian. When the Strigoi that was drinking from Christian saw, he dropped Christian—well, threw him at the ground would be more accurate—and started fighting with Eddie. It hit Eddie pretty hard over the head, and Mia freaked when she saw him fall so she conjured up some water to temporarily drown the Strigoi. Once it was unconscious, Mia ran over, grabbed Eddie's stake and shoved it into it's heart. Then Liss freaked and ran over to Christian, who was still conscious but drugged up, talked to him for a minute, healed his broken arm and his neck, and I healed Eddie's head."

I was speechless. Then, I noticed a minor cut on his forehead. "What happened to you?" I asked, brushing my fingers over it.

Adrian blushed. "Well . . . I kinda tripped over a rock and fell when I was running with Mia and Liss over to the wall."

"Adrian, don't be embarrassed. You were panicking. You obviously didn't see the rock." Then, I pulled up my sleeve, revealing a fresh cut that I got today.

"What happened?" Adrian asked.

"When I was shopping today, I was walking and I didn't notice a pole thing sticking out. It scraped my arm. See, I did something stupid too."

Suddenly, he reached out and laid his hand over the cut. A weird hot then cold sensation flooded me, and the cut disappeared before my eyes. "Did you just..?"

"Yeah, I just healed you. Don't worry, something as small as that won't even affect me."

"Good . . . Man, that felt weird."

Adrian laughed. "I know. It always does. I think Rose is the only one that's used to it, since she's always getting hurt."

Now, I laughed with him. "Probably. I'm surprised she didn't come back from horseback riding with like, a million injuries."

Adrian looked shocked. "Not one injury?" he asked. I nodded. "Wow. It's a cause for celebration! Viki, want me to bring her here?"

"You can do that?" I asked, a smile spreading on my face.

"Sure can."

"Okay!" I squealed happily.

"Hold on to me, because we're going wherever her subconscious takes us. Okay?"

"Okay." I replied, hugging him tightly. His eyes closed in concentration, and suddenly, we found ourselves standing in the barn at Donnie's.

"Oh Rosieeee!" Adrian called in a singsong voice.

"Adrian! What did I say about calling me Rosie?" she called from one of the stalls. I instantly knew that she'd be in Callie's.

"Follow me." I whispered. Adrian nodded, and I led him down to Callie's stall. We saw Rose brushing her and murmuring to her in a soft voice. I motioned for Adrian to be quiet, and then I pounced at Rose. But, before I got to her, she said, "Hey Vik."

I felt my eyes widen. "What? How did you know I was here?"

"I've been around your brother for way too long." she joked, still not turning around.

"That's a nice horse, Rose." Adrian said.

"Yeah, she is. Her name is Callie." Rose replied, hugging the black mare. Callie whinnied in response, and nuzzled the side of Rose's face. Then, Rose turned to Adrian. "Adrian, do you think that you can poof her gear on her? I'm too lazy to do it myself."

Adrian smiled. "Anything for you, little dhampir."

Rose smiled brightly. "Thanks!"

Adrian snapped his fingers, and Callie was all geared up. Rose put her foot in the stirrup and mounted her. "If I were you guys, I'd watch out." she warned.

Adrian and I stepped out of the way, and Rose whispered something in Callie's ear. Suddenly, Callie shot out of the stall and through the barn, exiting into the field. Adrian grabbed my hand and ran after her, dragging me along.

We watched as Rose rode Callie gracefully. Callie was galloping, and she was so fast. Then, I got an idea. "Adrian, wanna race her?" I asked.

Adrian grimaced. "I'm not much of a horse person. I fell off of a horse when I was younger."

I had to stop myself from laughing. "Well, let me show you the other horses."

"That, I can do." he replied.

I led him down the row of stalls, pointing out each horse. "This is Shadow." I said, pointing to the beautiful white stallion.

"He doesn't look like much of a shadow." Adrian commented.

I just laughed, and led him to the next stall. Jade's watchful eyes were on me. "This is Jade. She's the one that I ride."

"She's beautiful." Adrian said. "Just like you."

I blushed, and smacked his arm. I led him to the next one. "This is Aurora." I said, pointing to the grey mare. "She's Jade's daughter."

"I see. She's a pretty horse." he said, reaching over to pat her head. She whinnied at him, and he pulled his hand back. I rolled my eyes, a smile on my face.

I led him to the last horse, my sworn horse enemy. "This is Eddie." I said dryly.

Adrian laughed. "So that's what Edster was talking about earlier. He was telling us about a horse named Eddie that Rose sent him a picture of."

"Yeah, well Eddie—the horse, I mean—is an asshole. I don't know how Donnie puts up with him."

Adrian laughed again, louder this time. "I'll have to tell that to Eddie."

I rolled my eyes. "Can you poof some gear on Jade? I wanna ride with Rose."

"Anything for you, love." he said, snapping his fingers. I walked back over to Jade's stall, and all of her gear was on and secure looking.

"Thanks, Adri!" I squealed, throwing my arms around him

"No problem, Viki."

"Can you change my clothes too? Although I love the dress, it's not really ideal for horseback riding." I said sadly.

Suddenly, I was wearing the nicest riding clothes I'd ever seen.

"Thank you!"

"You're welcome. Now go, I wanna see you ride."

I quickly mounted Jade and walked her out of the barn. I spotted Rose on the far side of the field. "Ready, Jade?" Jade whinnied in response. "Go!" I shouted, and she took off.

Rose looked up when she heard the hoofbeats on the ground, and smiled. She started trotting over to us, and I slowed Jade down. "You ride Jade?" she asked, slightly out of breath.

"Yeah, she's my girl." I replied, rubbing her brown mane.

"Why isn't Adrian riding?"

I laughed. "I guess he fell off of a horse when he was younger and he's been terrified to get on ever since."

"You should try to convince him to get on the back of Jade. I'm sure he'd be fine if he was with you."

Her words warmed my heart. "Okay, come with me."

Rose nodded, and we galloped over to the entrance of the barn where Adrian stood.

"Hey girls." he said, leaning lazily against the doorway.

"Hey." we replied in unison.

"Listen, why don't you get on Jade with me? I won't let you fall." I said.

"I don't know . . ." he replied hesitantly.

"Oh, come on Adrian! Don't be a chicken shit!" Rose said jokingly.

"Little dhampir, must you be so mean to me?" he asked, a look of mock hurt on his face.

Rose smirked. "It's in the job description."

Adrian walked carefully over to me. "Promise you won't let me fall?" he asked.

"I promise. Don't worry, Jade's a gentle girl." I assured him.

"I can't believe I'm doing this." he muttered, pulling himself up behind me. Once he was up, he squeezed me tightly. "Okay, I'm ready."

"Adrian, open your eyes!" Rose said, smacking her face with her hand.

"No. You guys are lucky I'm even up here."

Rose rolled her eyes and trotted away. "Adrian," I said gently. "I'll just get Jade to walk for now, okay?"

"Okay." he replied, squeezing me tighter. I gently tapped Jade's sides and clicked at her, and she walked slowly forward.

"See? It's not so bad, is it?" I asked.

"No . . . it's kinda soothing."

"Open your eyes, Adri. It's okay." I said, turning my head to look at him. Slowly, he opened one eye experimentally, and the other soon followed.

"Whoa. I can't believe I'm on a horse again." he said, a happy expression on his face.

"Wanna trot?" I asked. I was getting bored with the slow pace, and I could tell that Jade was too.

"Okay . . ." he replied uneasily.

"Trust me." I whispered. I gave Jade's sides another tap, and she picked up the pace.

Suddenly, Rose whirred past us. "Wooooo!" she called, smiling as she went by. She turned back around, slowing down in the process, to ride alongside us. "See, Adrian? It's fun." she said.

"Yeah, it's not as bad as I thought it would be."

"Adrian . . . can you poof the gear off of Callie? I wanna ride bareback."

" 'Kay." he said, and the gear was gone.

"Is that better, Cal?" Rose asked the horse. She snorted in response. "Let's go then!" she said, tapping Callie's sides. Callie shot off like a comet, Rose cheering the whole time.

"She's good." Adrian commented, hugging me from behind.

"I know! I don't even have the confidence to ride bareback yet, and I've been riding since I was nine." I replied, staring at Rose and Callie in awe. The way they moved together was mesmerizing.

Suddenly, the gear disappeared off of Jade. "Adrian, what are you doing?"

"You got me on the horse, so we're gonna have fun. I did something that I was scared to do, so you are too."

I took a deep breath. "Fine. But we're gonna gallop, so hold on."

Instead of answering, he held me tighter. Taking another deep breath, I whispered "Go!" Jade whinnied, and took off after them.

"Ho-o-oly Shi-i-it-t-t!" Adrian shouted.

"Adrian! Move with Jade!" I shrieked, starting to panic. If he fell off, I'd freak out.

I heard him chant it over and over, and he soon relaxed. He even whooped for joy! "This is awesome!" he yelled.

Rose looked behind her and smiled. "Go Adrian!" she shouted happily.

We ran around for a while before heading back to the barn.

"Thank you for the great dream, Adrian. I had a lot of fun." I said, kissing him on the cheek.

"No problem, Viki. I had fun too, if you hadn't noticed." he replied, grinning.

"Well, I'm going to see Eddie, so I'll see you two lovebirds later."

"You're going to see Eddie?" I asked incredulously. "Why?"

"I like him. He's a good horse." she replied.

I raised and eyebrow at her. "Are you sure you mean Eddie and not Shadow?"

Rose laughed. "You don't like Eddie, do you?"

"He's the devil incarnate! Well, a horse devil incarnate."

"He's not so bad."

"Well, I need to see this with my own eyes."

Adrian was silent through our little exchange, staring at us with an amused look on his face.

We all headed towards Eddie's stall. "Hey, Eddie!" Rose called. We heard a snort. She opened the door to his stall and walked in. "Do you wanna go out to the field, boy?" she asked him, scratching his ear. He nuzzled her cheek. She grabbed his lead and led him out easily, as I watched with a stunned expression. Rose looked back and laughed when she saw my face. "Told ya." she said.

Still stunned, I followed her out to the field. She took his lead off, and he ran around.

"Believe me now?" she asked me.

"Well, you can handle him, but he's my horse enemy!" I replied.

Eddie popped up behind Rose and nudged her back, pushing her down. "Eddie! Are you kidding me? I thought that was a one time thing! I swear to God that if this becomes a regular thing, I'm not talking to you again." she said, huffing at him. Snorting, he walked over, ducked his head down and let her grab his halter, and pulled her up. "Thank you." she said warmly, rubbing his flank.

"I have no idea what just happened, but it was hilarious!" Adrian said, laughing. I joined in, and Rose glared at us.

"Well, at least he respects me enough to help me up."

"I've never seen Eddie like this. He's actually an okay horse, I guess." I said.

"Come pat him, guys." Rose said, motioning for us to come over.

I exchanged a look with Adrian, and he nodded. Taking his hand, we walked up to the beautiful brown and white paint horse. I reached a hand out tentatively to pet him, but he turned and sneezed in my face.

"EDDIE!" I screeched, wiping my face on my sleeve. He whinnied, and it almost sounded like he was laughing. I saw Adrian walk up to pet him, and Eddie licked his face.

"Wow Vik, I guess he just doesn't like you." Rose choked out through her fit of laughter.

"Yeah, laugh all you want. It's soooo funny, right?" I replied dryly.

"Aww, Viki . . . it's okay. I have to go now, but I'll see you tomorrow night. And Rose, I'll be watching your dreams okay?"

"Thanks. I appreciate it." she replied, hugging Adrian.

"I've got your back, little dhampir." I heard him whisper.

Instead of replying, she hugged him tighter.

"I'll see you in the morning, Rose. Okay?" I told her.

She groaned. "Ugh. Morning. Yeah, okay."

I laughed at her disgruntled expression. "Oh, mornings aren't so bad."

"Goodbye, you two." Adrian said, cutting Rose off from saying whatever she was going to say.

And with that, I was thrust into my own dreams.

**One Week Later**

**Rose POV**

The past week has been an eventful one.

I had no more darkness incidents, and we went to the stables almost everyday.

I also convinced Olena to let Lissa, Christian, Eddie and Mia stay here for a few days, by saying that I'd feel better if I could keep an eye on Lissa. She agreed almost immediately. They would be arriving this morning. Plus, we'd be staying here in Baia for a few extra days, which I was extremely happy about.

Another thing. Dimitri has been really weird all week, ever since the darkness got to me. Don't ask me why, because I have no idea. He's been treating me like a fragile little flower.

Don't get me wrong, I loved the man with everything that I had, but he was starting to piss me off. I could take care of myself.

I remembered a conversation we'd had that was extremely random, and I still didn't know the meaning behind.

_~Flashback~_

We were sitting in Dimitri's room, getting ready for bed.

"Roza?" he said questioningly.

"Yes, cowboy?" I replied, smirking.

"What are your views on children?"

I turned to look at him, both eyebrows raised because I was too sped to be able to raise one. "What do you mean? Like, having children?" Dimitri nodded. "Well, I'm not gonna lie, I've thought about it. But, I know I can't have children with you, and I've accepted it."

A weird look crossed his face. "But you're saying that if we could have children, then you'd be happy about it?"

"Yeah, I guess. Dimitri, what brought this on?" I asked.

"Nothing. Just an errant thought."

_~End Of Flashback~_

His words still puzzled me. Why would he ask that?

Sighing, I got up out of bed to go pee. Dimitri was still asleep, and I knew that I'd have to wake him up because we had to get ready to go to the airport in Omsk.

When I got back, Dimitri was sitting up in bed.

"Morning, sleepy." I said. I'd gone down to make him a cup of coffee, because I knew he'd be tired. For some reason, he's been going to bed later than me, and I always woke up to his hand wrapped around my stomach.

I handed him his coffee, and he took a sip before answering me. "Morning, Roza." he replied tiredly.

"I know you're tired, but you have to get ready. I'm driving, and I'm not taking no for an answer."

"Okay. I don't think it would be safe if I drove anyway."

"Good. Now, I'm going to take a shower, so make sure you're ready to get in when I get out."

"Sure, Roza. I'll be ready." he assured me, yawning hugely.

"If I get out of the shower and find you asleep, I'm kicking your ass." I warned him.

"Okay. I'll go downstairs so I don't fall asleep again." He got up, almost spilling his coffee. As he was about to walk out the door, I picked up his shirt and handed it to him.

"Forgetting something?" I asked.

"Right. Thanks, Roza."

"No problem. Now go, shoo."

He walked out the door and down the stairs, and I gathered my stuff. Before I went to the bathroom, I knocked on Viktoria's door.

"Huh?" I heard her say sleepily.

"Are you coming to the airport with us?" I asked.

I heard a loud thump, followed by her cussing, then the door opening. She was rubbing her head.

"Fall out of bed, Vik?" I asked, giggling.

"Trahnitye vas." she muttered.

"Language, little miss. Are you coming or not?"

"Yeah. I guess." she mumbled.

"Get dressed and run a brush through your hair. You look like something the cat drug in."

"Sooka." she grumbled, closing her door. I shook my head and rolled my eyes.

I showered quickly, taking five minutes. I dressed myself in dark wash jeans, a light blue t-shirt with the Superman symbol on it and a black and white checkered Fox sweater that had FOX in blue on the back. I didn't bother with any makeup since I didn't wanna be late.

When I walked down to the kitchen, Dimitri was finishing his breakfast.

"Morning, Olena." I said to the small woman who was bustling around the kitchen.

"Good morning, Rose. You look nice today."

"Thanks." I replied, smiling. "Has Viktoria been down yet?"

"No, not yet."

"Shit." I said under my breath. "Okay, I'm going to get her. You," I said, pointing to Dimitri. "Get in the shower. Like, now."

"Yes Rose." he muttered, getting up out of his chair. I ran up the stairs, Dimitri following behind me. Once we got to the top, I gave him a quick peck on the lips.

"Be fast." I told him.

"I will." he replied before going to his room to grab his clothes.

I knocked on Viktoria's door again.

"Yes?"

"Vik, are you ready yet?" I asked.

"No. I need help."

I sighed and opened her door. Clothes were draped over every possible surface in her room. "Yeah, I guess you do."

"What should I wear? I'm so lost." she whined.

I walked over to her bed. I picked up a dark pink tank top, light jeans and a black cardigan. I thrust it into her arms. "There. Hurry up, and come down for breakfast."

"Thank you soooo much, Rose! You're a lifesaver, I swear!" she said, hugging me tightly.

"Tell me something I don't know." I muttered. "Hurry up." I said before leaving her room, closing the door behind me. I ran back downstairs to the kitchen.

"Rose, honey. Did you want something to eat?" Olena asked.

I smiled. "I'm good with cereal."

"Are you sure? I could make you some eggs or something."

"I'm positive. Thanks for offering, though."

"Okay." she replied.

I walked over to the cupboard that held the cereal and grabbed one that vaguely resembled Rice Krispies. I grabbed a bowl, some milk and the sugar, and sat at the table. I poured some cereal in the bowl, then the milk and finally, sprinkled some sugar on top.

When I was halfway through the bowl—which really didn't take long because really, I'm Rose Hathaway, speed eater extraordinaire―Viktoria walked into the kitchen.

"Good morning, Mama." she said to Olena.

"Good morning, Vika. Do you want me to make you some breakfast?"

"No, I'll just have some cereal. We gotta be at the airport soon."

"You're going with them?" Olena asked.

"Yeah, I think that it'll be fun." Viktoria replied, smiling. I shot her a look that said _Yeah, right. I know why you're really going. _She just rolled her eyes at me and grabbed the same cereal that I had.

Dimitri came downstairs when I was putting my bowl in the sink.

"Ready?" he asked. He was definitely more awake than he was before.

"Wait fo mee!" Viktoria said, her mouth full.

I went and wrapped my arms around Dimitri. "You smell good. Is that Irish Spring?"

Dimitri laughed. "You're such a strange person. Yes Roza, it's Irish Spring."

I inhaled again. "It smells really good." I stood on my tiptoes to give him a kiss, which he eagerly returned.

"Ugh. Gross." Sonya commented, walking in the kitchen.

"I agree with you there, sis. Total barf." Viktoria said, making puking noises.

"Whatever." I said when I pulled away from Dimitri. "Vik, are you ready to go? Seriously, we're in a time crunch here."

"I'm going, I'm going." she muttered, putting her bowl in the sink.

I turned to Dimitri. "Keys?"

"On the hook by the door. I'll grab them." he replied.

"I gotta run upstairs and grab the CD that I burned. I'm not dealing with your crap '80s music again." I grumbled. Dimitri rolled his eyes, and I ran up the stairs and grabbed the two CD's that I made.

When I got back downstairs, we were out the door. It was a good thing that the van was an eight-seater, otherwise Viktoria wouldn't have been able to come.

Once I turned the van on, I put the first CD on. I had a pretty good selection of songs, so I was happy. The songs I had were:

_Hear Me Now – Secondhand Serenade  
Broken Arrow – Pixie Lott  
Tonight – Enrique Iglesias ft. Ludacris  
Careful – Paramore  
Hot Tottie – Usher ft. Jay-Z and Ester Dean  
6 Months – Hey Monday  
Your Guardian Angel – The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus  
Pretty Girl Rock – Keri Hilson  
Love The Way You Lie Part Two – Rihanna ft. Eminem  
Homecoming – Hey Monday  
Time – Cute Is What We Aim For  
Bottoms Up – Trey Songz ft. Nicki Minaj  
I Put The 'Metro' In Metronome – Cute Is What We Aim For  
We Are Broken – Paramore  
Hallelujah – Alexandra Burke  
Hot Mess – Chromeo  
Doncamatic – Gorillaz ft. Daley_

"Man, American songs are really good!" Viktoria said happily.

"I agree. The one that we're listening to now is called Hear Me Now by Secondhand Serenade. It's my favourite song right now. Well, this and the next one that's gonna play." I replied.

"What's the next one?" Viktoria asked.

"Broken Arrow by Pixie Lott. I only heard it recently, but I already love it."

"That's cool. Can I see the song list?"

"Sure. Dimitri, can you hand it to her?" I asked.

"Of course. Here, Vika." he said, handing her the CD case.

"Thanks Dimka!"

"No problem. Turn here," he told me.

"Right. I totally knew that," I replied, even though I didn't.

"Sure. The exit to the highway is coming up, so be looking."

"Or, you could just tell me when to turn. My Russian isn't good enough for me to read the signs and understand what they mean."

"That works too, I guess." Dimitri replied, smiling.

"So how long does it take to get to Omsk?" I asked.

"Two hours." Dimitri replied. **(A/N: I actually don't remember from the book, so if it's inaccurate, I'm sorry.)**

"Great. This will be _loads_ of fun." I said sarcastically.

"Oh, just enjoy it. Just think: You'll see Lissa once we get there."

"Yeah, I guess."

"Turn here." he directed me. After I turned, we drove a little before we were on the highway.

"Two hours, you said?" I asked.

"Yeah . . . why?"

I pressed the gas pedal down farther, and the van lurched forward. "Because I bet I can get us there in one and a half."

"Roza . . . slow down. We're going to get pulled over."

"Dimka, loosen up! It's fun and you know it." Viktoria said from the back seat.

"Yeah _Dimka_, I agree with Vik. Plus, do you really wanna be cooped up with us for two hours?" I asked.

Dimitri's eyes widened, and he stayed quiet.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

One hour, thirty-two minutes and one wrong turn later, we pulled into the parking lot of the airport.

"I told you I could get us here faster." I said smugly, getting out of the car and starting to walk.

"Yeah, whatever. We almost got a ticket because of your speeding." Dimitri replied sullenly.

"Yeah, well my good looks and horrible Russian skills got us out of it." I replied. We actually had been pulled over, but it was luckily a male cop. So, on goes the man-eater smile and the role of a dumb American, and we're off with a warning.

Viktoria high-fived me. "Again, good job with that. I mean, did you see the guy's face when you smiled at him? He was completely entranced by your beauty." she said with a giggle.

"Ah, that smile gets me out of everything." I replied.

Viktoria laughed. "Well, I'm impressed."

"I'm not." Dimitri muttered.

"Aww Dimi, you're just jealous, aren't you?"

"No." he grumbled.

I walked over and kissed him. "Don't worry. It was just to get us out of a ticket. By the way, I love you."

His face softened. "I love you too." he replied, leaning down to kiss me again.

"No PDA!" Viktoria shouted.

"Oh, stop it. It's not like you've never seen it before." I reminded her.

"Whatever." she said, opening the door to the airport. We walked in, and a quick check in Lissa's head told me that they were waiting at the baggage claim.

"Baggage claim, guys." I told them. They nodded, and we made our way through the crowd—which, by the way, smelled like B.O.

When we got to the baggage claim area, my eyes scanned the room for my group of friends. My eyes locked with Lissa's, and we were both suddenly hurtling across the room to eachother.

When we reached eachother, she threw her arms around me. "Rose!" she yelled.

"Ow! Liss, that was in my ear!" I said, smacking her back gently.

She let go of me and blushed. "Sorry. I'm just so happy to see you again!"

"I know you are. I'm happy to see you again too." I replied, hugging her again.

The rest of the group got over to us then. "Mia!" I squealed, throwing my arms around the small girl.

"Hey Rose!" she replied, squeezing me. "How are you?"

"I'm good. I'm happy that you're all here!" I said, turning to all of them. I walked over to Christian. "Hey, Count Sparkula!"

"Hey Rose."

I sighed. "Oh, give me a hug already!"

Rolling his eyes, he wrapped his arms around me. "I missed you." he whispered in my ear.

"I missed you too. Oh, and I haven't forgotten about you calling me Rosie." I whispered back.

I watched with satisfaction as he backed away from me, a look of terror on his face. Laughing, I walked over to hug Eddie. "Hey Eddington!"

"Eddington? Really, Rose?" he asked, shaking his head in amusement.

"Yes. It's very . . . sophisticated."

He rolled his eyes and hugged me tighter. "It's nice to see you uninjured, Rose."

"It's nice to _be _uninjured." I replied.

Letting go of Eddie, I turned to Adrian. His eyes were locked with Viktoria's, and I knew that he was close to running over to her. I could see that she was ready to do the same. I couldn't decide if I should stop them or not. I mean, Dimitri would find out soon enough. But, would they want him to find out like that?

My question was answered when she sprinted into his arms and hugged him.

"Shit! You guys couldn't have waited a little longer?" I asked, smacking my face.

Dimitri stared at them in disbelief. "What? Vika, why are you hugging him?" he asked.

Viktoria turned to look at me, looking like a deer in the headlights. It was as if she just realized what she'd done. I nodded slowly to her, letting her know that it was time. "Well . . ." she began. "Adrian and I . . . we've been seeing eachother in my dreams." She squeezed her eyes shut tightly, waiting for the outburst.

I watched as Dimitri's fists clenched and unclenched. He turned to me. "You knew?" His tone was accusatory, and I didn't like it.

I stuck my chin out defiantly. "Yes, I knew."

"Why didn't you tell me?" he asked, an angry expression on his face.

"Because I knew how you'd react. By the looks of things, my guess was spot on!" I spat. I edged closer to Dimitri until I stood right in front of him. I poked him in the chest. "You don't control her, Dimitri. Adrian is a good guy, you said it yourself." I kept poking him as I spoke.

He grabbed my wrist to stop me from poking him. "That's before I knew that he was with my little sister!" he said quietly, making his anger more terrifying. Well, terrifying to anyone else. He didn't scare me at all.

I saw Viktoria break away from Adrian. She ran over to us, pushing us apart. "You two need to chill. Like, now."

"Stay out of this, Viktoria." we said at the same time.

"No. This isn't your fight, Rose. It's mine." she persisted, stepping between us. Hands grabbed my arms and pulled me back.

"Listen to Viktoria, little dhampir. Let us handle this." Adrian said, pulling me to a chair.

I shook him off. "Well excuse me for trying to help!" I replied, throwing my hands up. Dimitri and Viktoria were arguing in rapid Russian, so I had no idea what they were saying. They gestured with their hands a lot, and they both looked angry.

Suddenly, I got the urge to puke. I stood up out of my chair, clamping my hand over my mouth. "I'm gonna puke." I mumbled, looking frantically for a washroom. Lissa grabbed my arm and pulled me to the bathroom, leading me to a stall. As soon as I was there, I bent over and threw up violently, while Lissa held my hair and rubbed my back soothingly.

Just when I thought I was done, I threw up again. My body heaved with the turmoil going on in my stomach.

"Are you okay?" Lissa asked once I was finally done. I ran over to the sink to rinse the disgusting taste from my mouth.

"Yeah, I think so. That was really weird. I mean, I've been fine all morning. It just kinda came on, just like that!" I said, snapping my fingers. "Thanks for holding my hair and coming with me." I said, attempting to smile but grimacing instead.

"Hey, that's what best friends are for." she replied, smoothing my hair.

"Well, would my best friend happen to have any gum? Puke tastes pretty nasty, you know."

"Hold on," she said, digging through her purse. She pulled out a pack of 5 React Mint. "I bought it for you. I know it's your favourite, so I brought you a pack."

I threw my arms around her. "It's official: You're the best friend ever!"

Lissa laughed. "Thanks. Hey . . . I'm sorry about the darkness. Adrian told me."

"Adrian? Viktoria must have told him." I muttered. "It's okay, Liss. Better me than you."

Lissa groaned. "Rose, you have to stop with the whole 'your life matters more than mine,' because it's not true. You have no idea how much you mean to all of us."

"Liss, I'm supposed to think like that. You're my charge. I'm supposed to do this kind of thing for you." I argued, although her words meant a lot to me.

She shook her head defiantly. "Rose, no matter what people say, we're equals. In my mind, I'm not a princess. I'm just a normal person with normal friends."

"Liss, I hate to break it to you, but we're not normal friends." I said, snorting. "But thanks anyway. By the way, I love ya, sis."

"I love you too, Rose. I don't know what I'd do without you."

I sighed. "Ready to go back out?"

"If you are. Are you sure you're okay now?" she asked, feelings of concern flooding through the bond.

"I'm fine. A little hungry."

Lissa laughed. "Only you would think about food right after you puke your guts out."

"Well, you know me. I do love food." I replied, rubbing my stomach.

Linking our arms together, we walked out the door to a pacing Dimitri.

**Dimitri POV**

I was in the middle of arguing with my sister, when I saw Rose stand up, her hand clamped firmly over her mouth.

"I'm gonna puke." she mumbled, her eyes darting around the room, presumably looking for a bathroom. Lissa grabbed her arm and pulled her to what I saw was in fact a bathroom, and they disappeared in the door.

Shit.

My argument with Viktoria forgotten, I ran over to the bathroom. I heard Rose throwing up inside, and Lissa speaking quietly to her.

Everything was quiet for a minute, before I heard her start throwing up again.

Morning sickness.

I couldn't believe that it was starting already. It made me wonder how far along she was.

Restless, I began pacing around.

I don't know how long I paced, deep in thought, before the bathroom door opened. Rose and Lissa came out, their arms linked. As soon as Lissa saw me, she detached herself from Rose.

"I'm going to see Christian." she announced. Rose and I both nodded, and she walked away.

I walked up to Rose. "Roza . . . are you okay?"

Instead of answering, she threw herself into my arms and buried her face in my chest. I held her like that, until my shirt started to feel wet. I tilted her face up so that she was looking at me, and tears stained her face.

"Roza, why are you crying?" I asked, wiping a few tears away.

"I'm sorry!" she wailed, hugging me tighter.

"For what?"

"For snapping at you! I seem to be doing that a lot lately, don't I?" she asked, her tearful brown eyes staring at me.

"Roza, it's okay. No harm done. I . . . I'm being irrational, aren't I?"

She chuckled quietly. "A little. Dimitri, I know that he isn't going to hurt her. I've made sure of it. I've been in a joint dream with them a few times, and they really care for eachother. I think it might even be love. When I look at them, I see us. Just little details that give them away. The way they move around eachother. The way they look at eachother. Stuff like that."

I closed my eyes and inhaled deeply. "If you think they're okay, then I trust you. I know that you care about both of them."

"I do. Thank you for trusting me." she replied, pulling my face down to hers to kiss me.

It lasted for about a minute before I pulled away. "Roza . . . but are you okay? I heard you throwing up."

She grimaced. "Yeah, I'm fine now. I don't know what even happened. I mean, I felt fine all morning and it was just really sudden."

I breathed deeply. I had to tell her now. "I do."

"You what?"

"I know why. Rose . . . you might want to sit down." I told her.

"You're kinda freaking me out, comrade." she said, walking over to a small seating area. We both sat down, and I grabbed both of her hands.

"What I'm about to tell you is . . . shocking, to say the least."

Her expression turned worried, and she inhaled deeply. "Just say it."

"Look me in the eyes when I tell you this. Roza, honey . . . you're pregnant."

Her eyes widened, and her mouth fell open with a pop. "But . . . but . . . it's not possible! You're lying!" she shrieked.

"Roza, I swear to you that I'm not lying. That's what Babushka was talking about. She came to me the night we watched the movie, and I finally got it out of her. Rose, we're having a baby."

Her breath came in short gasps, and she was turning scarily pale. "Roza? Honey, are you okay?"

"I think I'm gonna pass out." she gasped out.

"No! Roza, do not pass out. Just breathe. It's gonna be okay."

It took her a few minutes, but she was finally breathing normally again. She was still pale, but she seemed to be okay.

"Dimitri . . . are you positive?"

"Absolutely. I wouldn't be saying this if I wasn't."

Suddenly, she smiled hugely. "We're having a baby. We're going to have a family. OH MY GOD!" she shouted the last part happily, throwing her arms around me. I picked her up and spun her around, then kissed her deeply when I put her down.

"I know." I whispered. "It's amazing, isn't it?"

Instinctively, her hand rested on her stomach. "Very. Little baby Belikov." she cooed.

"I like the sound of that." I said, grinning like an idiot.

"Let's tell the others." she whispered excitedly, gripping my hands.

"Okay." She let go of one of my hands, but held the other in both of hers.

When we walked over to the others, they gave us weird looks. Well, other than Adrian and Viktoria, who were grinning at us. In that moment, I knew that they knew. I didn't know how, but they did.

"What just happened?" Christian asked. "One minute, you were crying, then you were all serious, then you looked like you were going to pass out, then you starting freaking out. What gives?"

"Yeah, I'm dying of curiosity!" Lissa squealed.

Rose motioned for Lissa to come over. She got up eagerly, and Rose let go of my hand.

**Rose POV**

I was over the moon. I was going to actually get what I'd been secretly wishing for. A baby with Dimitri. I didn't care about the how. I just cared about the fact that in nine months, I would be holding the most precious thing in my arms. Something that Dimitri and I made.

I motioned for Lissa to come over so that I could whisper in her ear. I let go of Dimitri's hand and led her a few feet away.

"Okay, spill." she said, putting her hands on her hips.

I put my lips at her ear. "I'm having a baby." I whispered.

The "WHAAAAT!" that came from Lissa nearly shattered my eardrums.

"I said, I'm having a baby. Babushka foresaw it, I guess, and that little puking episode was actually morning sickness." I said quietly.

Suddenly, Lissa squealed. "OH MY GOD! OH MY GOD OH MY GOD _OH MY GOD!_" she screeched, grabbing my arms and jumping up and down. Laughing, I jumped with her.

"I know!" I squealed happily.

"I'm gonna be an aunt." she whispered, her eyes watery.

"Yeah, Liss. You're gonna be an aunt. Now, I'm gonna tell the others."

"Okay!" she replied happily, prancing along at my side as I walked back over to the others.

"Okay, you seriously need to tell us what's going on!" Christian whined.

Dimitri came back over to stand beside me. My eyes locked with his, and he nodded in encouragement.

"I'M PREGNANT!" I yelled.

Even though she already knew, Lissa squealed again. Everyone else—other than Adrian and Viktoria, which was weird—seemed to be in shock. Finally, Mia squealed.

"Oh my God! That's amazing! But Rose, how?" she asked.

I turned to Dimitri so that he could explain. "My grandmother has . . . premonitions, I suppose. She sees things in her dreams and, well, she saw this. She told me that it's only ever happened once before, and it was hundreds of years ago. She's never been wrong about anything before. Rose puking just now confirmed it for me. That was morning sickness." he explained.

Everyone stared at Dimitri and I in awe.

"Congrats, guys. I'm happy for the both of you." Christian said, smiling at both of us.

I squealed and ran over to him, hugging him tightly. "Thank you, Sparky." I whispered.

I walked back over to Dimitri. "GROUP HUG!" I yelled. Everyone ran over to us, squeezing both of us tightly. "Not too tight, guys." I said, resting my hand over my stomach. This little baby explained so much.

Together, we all headed out to the car. It was decided that Dimitri would drive this time, in case I needed to puke again.

Once we started driving, we started talking about baby names.

"If it's a girl, what are going to name her?"

"I like Annika." Dimitri said, smiling.

"That's a really pretty name, cowboy!" I squealed. "I like that, Skylar, and Isabelle."

"I love all of them." Dimitri replied. "Now . . . if it's a boy?"

"I like Jayce." I said.

"I like Aleksandr or Maksim, as well as Jayce." Dimitri replied.

"Guys?" I said, turning to the people in the backseat.

"I like Annika, Skylar, Jayce and Aleksandr." Lissa said. There were nods of agreement from everyone else.

"Well, then I guess we've narrowed it down to two each." Dimitri replied, chuckling.

"Well, maybe we'll have multiples." I joked.

Dimitri shook his head. "Maybe, Roza."

. . . . . . . . . . . . .

Two hours and one stop for me to puke on the side of the road later, we were back at the Belikov home.

"Here we are." I announced. We all got out of the car and stretched. Everyone grabbed their bags from the back of the van, and we walked inside.

The house was filled with the smell of fresh food. It made my mouth water and my stomach rumble.

"Mama, we're home!" Dimitri called.

Olena came out of the kitchen, wiping her hands on her apron. "Welcome everyone! I'm Olena, Dimitri and Viktoria's mother."

"Olena, these are my friends. This is Lissa," I said pointing to Lissa. "Adrian, Christian, Eddie, and Mia." As I said their names, I pointed each of them out.

"It's very nice to meet all of you." Olena replied warmly.

"It's nice to meet you too, Mrs. Belikova. You have a beautiful home!" Lissa said, walking up to hug the smaller woman.

"Thank you, princess."

"Please, call me Lissa."

"If you call me Olena."

"Deal." Lissa replied, a big smile on her face.

"Who's here? Aunty Rose, are these your friends?" Paul asked, running down the stairs.

"Yes Paul, these are my friends." I replied, reaching down to lift him.

"Hi everyone! I'm Paul!" he announced. We all had to laugh; it was too cute!

"Hey Paul." Adrian said, reaching over to shake Paul's hand. "My name is Adrian."

"It's nice to meet you, Adrian!" Paul said, smiling his little dimply smile at Adrian.

"It's nice to meet you too, Paul."

Lissa walked up to me. "He is too cute!" she whispered, before turning to Paul. "Hi Paul. I'm Lissa."

"Whoa. You're pretty, Lissa!" he said, reaching for her. Smiling, I handed him to her.

"Why, thank you Paul! You're very handsome." she replied, poking his nose.

"Thanks!" he said happily, wrapping his little arms around her neck.

Christian walked over. "Hey, buddy. My name is Christian."

"Hello Christian. Your name is long. I'm gonna just call you Chris."

"Sure, little man." Christian said.

"Can you put me down, Lissa?" Paul asked.

"Sure. Here you go." she replied, setting him down. He ran over to Eddie and Mia.

"Who are you guys?" he asked.

"I'm Mia." Mia said, reaching down to shake his hand.

"Hi Mia. Who's your friend?"

"I'm Eddie." Eddie said.

"I like your name. It sounds like a cool guy name. Wanna be my friend?"

Eddie laughed. "Sure, Paul."

Paul grinned. "I gotta go tell my mama!" he yelled, shooting up the stairs.

"What a cute kid!" Eddie exclaimed, chuckling.

"Yeah, he is pretty cute." Adrian agreed,

Then, I felt nauseous again. "Ugh, not again!" I said, clamping my hand over my mouth. I ran up the stairs like a bat outta hell, Dimitri following behind me. I ducked into the bathroom and threw up. Again.

"This is getting old." I moaned.

Dimitri rubbed my back gently, pulling my hair back. "I know. I'm sorry that you have to go through this."

I was about to answer him, but I just threw up again. "Ugh, I need food." I groaned, flushing the toilet. I walked over to the sink, grabbed my toothbrush and brushed my teeth.

"Come on, the food that Mama made is probably done." Dimitri told me, trying to comfort me.

"I hope so."

We walked back downstairs and sat in the living room, where Yeva stared at us.

"She knows." Dimitri informed her.

"Good. It's better that way." the old woman replied.

"I hate morning sickness." I whined.

"Just think of what will come out of this. You know it's worth it, young one." Yeva said to me.

"I know, it's just gonna suck."

"Don't worry. It will pass." Yeva said.

"I hope so." I replied, rubbing my stomach. "Dimitri, we should probably make a doctor's appointment."

"Right. I'll go do that now, and how about you show everyone where they'll be sleeping?" Dimitri asked.

"Sure." I replied. I walked back out to the doorway, where my friends still stood. "Come on, guys. I'll show you where you'll all be sleeping." I announced.

"Sure." they replied in unison.

I led them upstairs. "The guys will be staying in Paul's room." I said, pointing to the door that said Paul in Russian. The guys nodded. "The girls will get the spare bedroom." I said, leading them to the end of the hall. "Are we clear?" I asked. Everyone nodded. "Well, let's get all of your stuff up here and get you all settled in."

We all walked back downstairs to grab the suitcases. I left them to go back upstairs themselves, because I wanted to see if Dimitri got us an appointment. I found him in the piano room with a phone book laying open on the piano bench. He was speaking rapidly in Russian, so I had no idea what he was saying. I wrapped my arms around him from behind for a quick hug before sitting down on the piano bench. I played softly to myself as he spoke.

A few minutes later, he set his cell phone down.

"Any luck?" I asked.

"We have an appointment today in . . . two hours. Don't worry, the doctor speaks English. I made sure of it."

"Okay, that's fine." I replied. "Can you go get my friends? I wanna play piano for them."

"Sure, Roza." he said. He pressed a kiss to my forehead and ducked out the door.

About a minute later, he returned with all of my friends.

"Hey guys. Most of you don't know this, but . . . I play the piano."

Christian laughed. "I'll believe that when I see it."

Lissa smacked him. "It's true, Christian."

Christian folded his arms across his chest. "I wanna hear her play then."

I rolled my eyes, and turned to face the keys.

I began playing "Innocence" by Avril Lavigne.

_Waking up  
I see that everything is okay  
The first time in my life  
And now it's so great  
Slowing down  
I look around and I am so amazed  
I think about  
The little things that make life great  
I wouldn't change a thing about it  
This is the best feeling_

_This innocence  
Is brilliant  
I hope that it will stay  
This moment  
Is perfect  
Please don't go away  
I need you know  
And I'll hold on to it  
Don't you  
Let it pass you by_

_I found a place  
So safe  
Not a single tear  
The first time in my life  
And now it's so clear  
Feel calm  
I belong  
I'm so happy here  
It's so strong  
And now I let myself be sincere  
I wouldn't change a thing about it  
This is the best feeling_

_This innocence  
Is brilliant  
I hope that it will stay  
This moment  
Is perfect  
Please don't go away_

_I need you now  
And I'll hold on to it  
Don't you  
Let it pass you by_

_It's a state of bliss  
You think you're dreaming  
It's the happiness inside  
That you're feeling  
It's so beautiful  
It makes you wanna cry  
It's a state of bliss  
You think you're dreaming  
It's the happiness inside  
That you're feeling  
It's so beautiful  
It makes you wanna cry  
It's so beautiful  
It makes you wanna cry_

_This innocence  
Is brilliant  
It makes you wanna cry  
This innocence  
Is brilliant  
Please don't go away_

_'Cause I need you now  
And I'll hold on to it  
Don't you  
Let it pass you by_

_This innocence  
Is brilliant  
I hope that it will stay  
This moment  
Is perfect  
Please don't go away_

_I need you now  
And I'll hold on to it  
Don't you  
Let it pass you by_

When I finished, Christian was speechless.

"Rose . . . wow." Eddie murmured, shaking his head.

"I'm with Eddie . . . that was great!" Mia exclaimed.

"I definitely wasn't expecting _that._" Christian said, still shocked. "But good job. I can't believe you just played that, but good job."

"Thanks, everyone." I said sincerely.

"Lunch is ready!" Olena called from the kitchen. I jumped up off the piano bench and ran to the kitchen, getting there first. Olena chuckled. "Hungry?"

"Hungry would be an understatement, Olena." I replied, grabbing a roll.

"Well, go out and sit down. I'll bring you your food."

"Are you sure? I can help bring stuff out. I don't mind."

"Okay. Well, you can take the basket of rolls and the butter."

"Okay." I said, grabbing the rolls and the butter dish. I walked out and put them on the table, where the rest of my friends were seated already.

"Well, this day is just full of surprises." Christian observed. "There's you and your baby, then you playing piano and singing, and now you're actually helping out!" he joked.

"Ha. Funny. Oobludok." I muttered, walking back out to the kitchen. I grabbed a glass for everyone, and walked back out to hand them out.

I set a sippy cup in front of Christian. "It's the perfect cup for you, Sparky." I chortled, sitting down beside Dimitri.

"Ah, Rose. I see your since of humour has grown since I last saw you. Bravo. I'm impressed." he said, clapping his hands.

Lissa got up, grabbing his sippy cup. "You two are so immature," she said with a laugh. She headed out to the kitchen and came back with a normal glass.

"Liss, you're no fun." I whined.

"Meh. Whatever." she replied, grinning at me.

Olena brought the food out, and whatever it was, it smelled delicious.

So delicious that I had three helpings.

Everyone stared at me, their mouths hanging open. "What? I told you guys I was hungry. Throwing up all morning can do that to you." I said, wiping my mouth with my napkin.

"Still . . . that was a lot of food! I'm surprised that you haven't exploded yet." Lissa said, her eyes wide.

I stuck my tongue out at her, and grinned. "Well, you know my amazing talents for eating, Liss. This shouldn't come as a surprise."

"It really shouldn't." she agreed.

I sighed and got up. "Liss, did you bring my extra clothes?" I asked.

"Yep. Come with me, we can put them with your other stuff." she replied, standing up as well.

Together, we walked up the stairs to the spare room. Lissa led me over to where her stuff was, and grabbed a smaller suitcase. "This is your stuff." she said, handing me the smaller suitcase.

"Thanks, Liss. Here, come with me to Dimitri's room."

She nodded, and we walked down the hallway. I turned into Dimitri's room, and she followed along behind me.

She looked around, and murmured, "This room is very . . . Dimitri."

"Yeah, I'm trying to get him to decorate a little." I replied. I went over and sat on the bed, and Lissa followed.

"How are you, Rose? A lot has happened today, and we haven't really had the chance to talk."

I leaned my head on her shoulder. "I'm fine, Liss."

"There's something that you're not saying. I can tell, Rose."

I sighed. "I'm a little freaked out about everything. Don't get me wrong, I'm extremely happy about the baby, but the reality of it is kinda crashing down on me. In nine months, I'm gonna have to take care of a little baby. Plus, I'm going to be a mother at the age of nineteen. It's scary, Liss."

She hugged me. "Rose, you'll be a great mom. I know you will. And the age . . . Rose, does it really matter? You're having a baby with the man that you love. I know that's something you've always wanted. And I know that it's scary. But you have all of us to help you through it. You're not alone, Rose."

Her last words brought tears to my eyes. "Thanks, Liss. You always know how to make me feel better. And . . . I know that my age doesn't matter. You're right. I'm having a baby with the man that I love, and that's all that matters. And I know that as long as I have you guys, I'll be okay."

We sat there for a few minutes before I spoke again. "Liss, how about I take you horseback riding, since you've been so great?"

Lissa's face lit up. "Really? Oh Rose, that would be great!"

"We can go after my doctor's appointment."

"You got an appointment already?"

"Dimitri called earlier. We're all set."

"That's great! You better show me the ultrasound picture." she said in a warning voice.

"Don't worry. But, I'm showing it to Olena first. I think that's a good way to tell her." I replied.

"Yeah, I'm good with that." she said, smiling. "Olena is such a nice woman! Now I know why you already love her, she's great!"

I grinned. "Yeah, Olena's pretty cool. Have you talked to Yeva yet?" I asked.

"No, not yet. I will later. I haven't talked to Dimitri's other sisters yet either, well, other than Karolina on the phone."

"Well, we can go see them all. Let's go." I said, getting up off the bed.

"Okay." Lissa replied, and we walked out Dimitri's bedroom door.

**Wasn't that chapter awesome? I loved it soooo much :D So, next chapter should be up soon!**

**Hmmm . . . I wanna get to 240-250 reviews! It'll show just how awesome all of you really are!**

**My poll is officially closed, and I know what I'm doing for gender and how many. Thank you to everyone who voted, I appreciate it!**

**Until next time!**

**Songs listened to for this chapter:  
Hear Me Now – Secondhand Serenade  
Broken Arrow – Pixie Lott  
Love The Way You Lie Part Two – Rihanna ft. Eminem  
Everytime We Touch – Secondhand Serenade  
6 Months – Hey Monday  
Hallelujah – Alexandra Burke  
Tonight – Enrique Iglesias ft. Ludacris  
Dancing With Tears In My Eyes – Ke$ha  
Hot Tottie – Usher ft. Jay-Z and Ester Dean  
I Just Had Sex – The Lonely Island ft. Akon XD  
Hipbones and Microphones – Cute Is What We Aim For  
Innocence – Avril Lavigne  
We Are Broken – Paramore  
Pretend – Secondhand Serenade  
Last Time – Secondhand Serenade  
His Mistakes – Usher**

**I don't know if it's just me, but I think that Broken Arrow is the perfect song to describe Rose and Adrian's relationship in the actual books :D**


	20. Chapter 21

**A/N: Hey everyone! So here's the next chapter :) I hope you all like what I've chosen to do! I really like this chapter a lot, and I hope that all of you will too :D**

**OMG I READ AWAKENED! I cried my eyes out :'( it was so sad! I couldn't believe some of the things that happened! I can't wait for November when Destined comes out!**

**Disclaimer: You all know that I am not Richelle Mead, therefore I do not own Vampire Academy. No matter how many times I wish I did.**

Happy Reading! Sarah

**CHAPTER **Eighteen

We were on our way to the doctor's office.

To say I was nervous would be an understatement.

I sat bouncing in my seat, unable to sit still.

"Roza, relax." Dimitri said, putting his hand over mine. I relaxed slightly at his touch, but I couldn't stop bouncing.

"Yeah, relax. I can do that." I replied, staring at him.

"Why are you so jittery?" he asked.

"Comrade, I don't even know." I replied, looking out the window.

"Well, everything's gonna be okay. Don't worry, okay?"

"Okay. Relax, don't worry. Relax, don't worry." I chanted to myself, staring at my feet.

Dimitri chuckled. "You know, you're quite funny when you're nervous about something."

I smacked his arm. "Not helping, Dimitri. I don't know why, but I can't calm down."

He held my hand in his. "Just stop worrying. I don't know what's got you all keyed up, but you have to try to just calm down."

"I think it's half excitement, twenty-five percent wonder, and twenty-five percent scared-ness."

"Is scared-ness even a word?"

"I don't know, and I really don't care."

Suddenly, we pulled into a parking lot, and my jitters got even worse. "Roza, look at me." I did. "We are going to go in there and see our little baby. It's going to be okay."

"I know. I really don't know why I'm being like this. I mean, I'm ecstatic about this baby. I'm just nervous."

"Honey, it wouldn't be normal if you weren't nervous. But let's go in now. It's time to see the little thing growing inside of you."

I took a deep breath and closed my eyes. "Okay. I'm ready."

He kissed me quickly. "Okay. Let's go."

We stepped out of the car, and he grabbed my hand. We walked into the office together, and stepped up to the counter.

"We have an appointment." Dimitri told the lady behind the counter.

"Name?" she asked, her Russian accent heavy.

"Rose Hathaway." Dimitri replied.

"Go sit down. The doctor will be ready for you in a moment."

"Thank you." I said. We walked over to the small seating area and sat down.

"How are you, Roza?" Dimitri asked, still holding my hand.

I took a deep breath. "I'm fine. I don't know what that was in the car, but I'm good now."

"That's good. Are you excited to see the baby?"

"Of course. Even though it'll be the size of a peanut." I said, laughing.

"Our little peanut." Dimitri cooed, putting his hand on my belly.

"You're such a sap." I joked.

"Hey, I'm excited about this."

"I know. I am too. Our little peanut." I agreed.

Moments later, the secretary called my name. "Rose Hathaway."

Dimitri and I stood up and followed the secretary down a hallway. She led us to the very last room. "The doctor will be with you in just a moment." she said, smiling. "Oh, congratulations."

I smiled back. "Thank you."

Still smiling, she left the room. "She seems nice." I commented.

"Yeah, she does." Dimitri agreed.

We sat in silence for a few minutes, before the door opened. A female Moroi doctor walked in. She looked to be in her mid-thirties, and she had long red hair and inviting pale green eyes. She looked down at her chart. "Hello, Rose. I'm Dr. Malinov." she announced, her Russian accent barely noticeable.

"Hello Dr. Malinov." I said, smiling.

"Who's this?" she asked, gesturing to Dimitri.

"My boyfriend, Dimitri."

"I see. Hello, Dimitri."

"Hello, Doctor."

She smiled, and turned back to me. "So, my chart tells me that you're pregnant, and this is your first check up."

"Yep." I replied.

"Well, congratulations, Rose. Now, let's check this baby. Pull up your shirt, please."

I did as she asked, and pulled up my shirt to expose my belly. She wheeled the ultrasound machine over and turned the lights off. She grabbed the gel stuff and squirted it on my tummy, and I gasped at the coldness of it.

Her expression turned apologetic. "I know, it's cold."

"It's okay. I just wasn't expecting it, that's all." I assured her.

"Okay. Now, look at the screen." she told me, and I did. The image on the screen was grainy, and I had no idea what I was looking at. Then the image shifted, and Dr. Malinov put her finger on the screen. "Here's your baby." she said, pointing to a tiny blob on the screen. I watched as her expression turned puzzled, which then turned into a smile. "And here's your other two." she said, putting two fingers on two more little blobs. "Congratulations, you're having triplets!"

My eyes widened, and my mouth fell open with a pop. "Triplets?" I squeaked.

"Yes." Then we heard the most precious sound in the world. "That's their heartbeats," she said. "I'll print your pictures and then I'll give you two a few moments alone."

I could only nod. I was still trying to process the fact that I was having triplets. _Triplets._

"How far along is she?" Dimitri asked.

"She's about three weeks into the pregnancy." Dr. Malinov replied.

Dimitri smiled. "Thank you, Dr. Malinov."

"No problem. Here," she said, handing him our ultrasound photos. She handed me some paper towel to wipe the gel off of my stomach, which I gladly accepted. "I'll leave you two alone now."

"Thank you." I murmured.

"You're very welcome, Rose. Again, congratulations. And I'll give your prenatal vitamins to the secretary." she said before leaving the room, shutting the door behind her.

Dimitri got up and walked over to me. "Triplets." he murmured. His face was awed, a huge smile on his face that I was pretty sure would be there permanently.

"I know." I whispered happily, wiping my stomach. "So, correction. Our little _peanuts._"

"Roza, you have no idea how happy I am. I thought that we would never be able to have even one child, and now we're having three. It's a miracle."

"It is. They're our miracle babies." I murmured, rubbing my very small bump. "What do you hope we have?"

"It doesn't matter to me."

"Yeah, I agree." I said, pulling my shirt down. "Ready to go?" I asked.

"Sure." he replied, helping me off the table. Once I was down, he pulled me in for a kiss. His kiss said so much more than words could have dreamed of saying. I thought my heart would burst with the amount of love in that kiss.

When we pulled away, he leaned his forehead against mine. "I love you, Roza."

"I love you too, Dimitri."

We walked out the door, and as we walked by the secretary, she spoke. "How is your baby?" she asked.

"We're having triplets." I told her.

"Well, congratulations times three." she said, smiling warmly at us. She handed me my prenatal vitamins.

"Thank you." I replied, smiling at the older woman. She just nodded, and we walked out the front door.

"So, you think we should tell my mother by showing her the pictures?" Dimitri asked, getting in the car. I'd explained it to him before we left his house.

"Yeah, I think it would be a good way to tell her." I replied. He started the car, and we started driving.

"Okay. I hope she understands that it's my child and not some Moroi's."

"I'm sure she will. Your mother knows me enough now to know that I'd never, ever cheat on you. You're my one and only love."

He leaned over to kiss me quickly. "Thank you. And yeah, I agree. Mama will understand."

"Oh my God, Lissa is gonna _freak!_" I exclaimed.

Dimitri laughed. "I can see it now, and I know that it will involve plenty of happy screaming. On her part and yours."

I giggled. "I know. But, it's a good reason."

"That it is, Roza. For our little peanuts."

"I bet people will laugh at us for calling them that. But, I don't care. I love my little peanuts."

"I do too. Our little miracle babies."

We drove the rest of the way home with huge smiles on both our faces.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

When we walked in the door, I was tackled by Lissa.

"Show me! Show me show me show me!" she chanted.

"Not yet. Remember? Olena first." I reminded her.

Her face fell. "Right. She's in the kitchen. I'll be waiting in the living room with Viktoria."

"Okay." I replied, taking my shoes off. Lissa walked back to the living room, and Dimitri and I went to the kitchen.

"Mama, we're home." Dimitri said.

"Oh, Dimka, Rose! Where were you?" she asked.

I looked to Dimitri, and he smiled.

"We were at the doctor's office." I said.

"Why? Are you sick? Is there something wrong?" she asked, walking over to feel my temperature.

I laughed. "I'm fine. There's nothing wrong. More like something right."

Her expression turned suspicious. "What do you mean?"

I turned to Dimitri and nodded to him.

"Mama, close your eyes and hold your hands out." he told her. She did, and he grabbed the picture out of his pocket, setting it in her hands. "Open." he said.

When Olena saw what was in her hands, her eyes widened. She looked at me, then Dimitri, then back to me. "Rose . . . are you pregnant?"

"Yes." I replied. Olena squealed and threw her arms around me, hugging me tightly. When she pulled away, she examined the picture more closely.

"Is that . . . is that three babies I see?"

I nodded, and she squealed again. Then, her face fell. "Who's the father?" she asked.

"I am." Dimitri announced. Olena laughed.

"Dimitri, you know that's not possible. You're both dhampirs." she said slowly.

"Olena, it's true. Dimitri's the only one I've . . . been with." I said, blushing.

"But . . . how? I don't understand."

"We don't know how. Babushka foresaw it, Mama. She said it's happened once before, hundreds of years ago. But those three babies are mine." Dimitri replied.

"OH MY GOD! I'M SO HAPPY!" Olena shrieked, throwing her arms around both of us. Once she calmed down, she spoke again. "Can I keep this one and put it on the fridge?" she asked, holding the ultrasound picture up.

"Of course." I replied.

"Thank you so much, Rose. I can't believe I'm going to be a grandmother of triplets!" she said excitedly.

"I know. It's hard to believe." Dimitri said, just as Karolina and Sonya came tearing down the stairs.

"What's all the screaming about?" Karolina asked.

Olena ran over to her daughters and showed them the picture. They looked shocked.

"Rose?" Sonya questioned, staring at me.

I nodded excitedly. Dimitri wrapped his arms around me and kissed my forehead.

"But how?" Karolina asked. "You didn't cheat on Dimka, did you?"

"Of course not! I'd never do that. Those are his babies." I replied.

"Babies? Oh my God, there's three!" Sonya exclaimed, staring at the picture.

"That's amazing, Rose!" Karolina squealed, coming over to hug me.

"Thank you. They're our little peanuts." I said, smiling.

"That's so cute!" Karolina and Sonya said at the same time.

I grabbed the other picture from Dimitri. "I'd better show Lissa. She's dying to know."

"Okay." Dimitri replied. His sisters and mother surrounded him, giving him a group hug. I laughed and walked out to the living room, where I was tackled by Lissa. Again.

"Easy, Liss. I don't want my little peanuts to get hurt." Crap. I realized what I'd just said.

"Peanuts? Like, plural?" she asked. I just nodded. "OH MY GOD YOU'RE HAVING TWINS!" she screamed.

I shook my head. "Wrong."

Her eyes looked like they were going to pop out of her head. Viktoria ran over to us. They looked at eachother, the yelled, "YOU'RE HAVING TRIPLETS!"

I squealed, and they knew they were right. I handed them the picture, and they looked at it, smiling like idiots.

The rest of my friends came in from the backyard, grinning like fools.

"I'm guessing you all heard what just happened?" I asked. They all nodded and ran over, enveloping me in a group hug.

"I'm happy for you, Rosie." Christian said.

"Watch it." I growled. "Just because I'm pregnant, it doesn't mean that I can't kick your ass."

"Slip of the tongue, Rose. I swear." he said, holding his hands up in surrender.

I eyed him. "Fine. You're off the hook this time, but next time, you won't be so lucky. Got it?"

"Loud and clear."

"I can't believe you're having triplets!" Mia exclaimed.

"It's crazy, Rose." Eddie said.

I smiled. "I know, but I love my little peanuts."

Christian burst out laughing. "Your little peanuts? Rose, that's just weird."

Lissa elbowed him. "I think it's cute. Three little peanuts." she cooed.

I rolled my eyes. "Ready to go horseback riding, Liss?"

"Yep. I just have to get my shoes on. Adrian and Viktoria are coming too."

"Okay, I'll go tell Dimitri. Just put the ultrasound picture on the table, okay?" I told her. She nodded, and I went back to the kitchen.

Dimitri, Sonya, Karolina and Olena were chattering excitedly in Russian. They looked up when I came in, and smiled at me.

"Ready to go?" I asked Dimitri.

"Sure." he replied.

"Adrian and Vik are coming with us."

Dimitri smiled. "Okay. Go wait in the car, I'll be right out."

"Okay. Hurry up." I said.

"Of course." he replied, pecking me on the lips.

Adrian, Viktoria and Lissa were waiting at the front door. "Dimitri wants us to go get in the car. He said he'll be right out." I told them.

"Okay." the three of them replied in unison.

"You people have got to stop doing that. It freaks me out." I said, shivering. I opened the front door, and we all walked down to the car. I got in the front seat, and the other three got in the back, putting Viktoria in the middle.

"I can't believe that I have to sit in the middle. Not cool, guys." she complained.

We all just laughed at her.

A few minutes later, Dimitri came out to the car, looking happy. I wonder what that's all about?

"Ready to go?" he asked.

"Yes!" we all exclaimed in unison.

With a chuckle, he started the car.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Forty-five minutes later, we arrived at Donnie's stables.

"Hey Donnie!" I yelled. "We brought some friends. I hope that's okay."

Donnie appeared from behind the stable. "That's fine. The horses are all out in the field."

Without another word, I took off towards the field. I ran as fast as I could, and got there in record time.

When Callie and Eddie noticed me, they whinnied and ran over. I opened the gate and walked in.

"Callie! Eddie! I missed you two!" I said, wrapping my arms around their necks. I spotted Shadow, and started walking towards him. Well, until Eddie nudged me. Again.

I fell flat on my face. "Eddie! Are you serious? I thought we talked about this." I said. Snorting, he trotted over to help me up. "You're a serious piece of work, aren't you?" I asked, rubbing his muzzle. He whinnied, and ran to the gate to see who else came.

Callie walked up to me. "Ready, girl? It's time to show our bareback skills." She snorted, and I grabbed a fistful of her mane, swinging myself up. Once I was seated, we trotted over to the gate.

"Wow, Rose! She's beautiful!" Lissa squealed. Then, she turned to Eddie, who was rubbing his nose on Adrian. "This must be Eddie." she said, grinning.

"Yep. He sure likes to push me down. Every single time I come, he does it." I told her, smiling at the rascally paint horse. "Be right back." I said. Everyone nodded. "Go, girl!" I yelled, tapping her sides. Whinnying, she took off galloping. I gripped her mane tightly as we ran towards Shadow.

Behind me, I heard Dimitri calling out to me. "Roza, are you sure that's safe? Especially now that you're pregnant?"

"I'm positive. I trust Callie, and she trusts me. Don't worry!" I yelled back.

When we got over to Shadow, he snorted and walked up to me so that I could pat him. "Come on, boy. Let's go over and see the others."

Whinnying, he galloped beside up as we ran to the gate. Once we got there, Dimitri walked up to pet Shadow. "Hey big boy." he said, rubbing the stallion's muzzle.

I dismounted Callie and walked over to Lissa. "Lissa, I was thinking that you could ride Aurora. She's the grey horse beside the big brown one."

As Lissa stared at Aurora, she smiled. "Okay."

I turned to Adrian. "I'm guessing that you're going to ride Eddie?"

"Yeah, I think I trust him enough." Adrian replied, grinning.

"Good. Well, let's get the horses ready." I said, grabbing two leads. "Dimitri, can you ride Shadow bareback? We need to go grab Aurora and Jade."

"Sure." he replied. I handed him a lead, and he swung himself up onto Shadow's back. I did the same with Callie, and we took off for the other side of the field where Jade and Aurora were grazing.

"Jade. Come here, girl." I said. She lazily walked up to me, and I attached the lead. I saw Dimitri do the same with Aurora, and we trotted over to the stable.

Everyone was already inside, grabbing riding helmets. Dimitri and I tied Jade and Aurora to a pole and grabbed our own helmets.

As I was about to reach for Callie's saddle, Dimitri stopped me. "Let me. Don't strain yourself."

I glared at him. "Dimitri, I can do it myself. It's not going to hurt the babies."

"Okay, okay. Go ahead." he replied. I grabbed the saddle and bridle and walked over to Callie. I swung the saddle up on her back and latched it, then put her bridle on her. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Lissa patting Aurora.

"Liss, do you want me to help you get her ready?" I asked.

"Yeah, help would be nice. I have no idea how anything goes on."

"Okay, come with me." I said. We walked into the equipment room, and I grabbed the saddle with the mint green saddle blanket. I nodded towards the bridles. "Grab one of those." I said.

Walking back out, I placed the saddle on Aurora's back. "Latch it tightly, but not too tight. Here, hand me the bridle." I said. As Lissa latched the saddle, I put Aurora's bridle on her. "There you go, pretty girl." I told the horse. "Be nice for Lissa."

Aurora whinnied, and I moved to help Lissa get up. "Put your foot in the stirrup and pull yourself up. Don't worry, I won't let you fall." Lissa did as I told her, and pulled herself up easily.

"Easy-peasy." she said.

"Now, you know how to make her go, right?" I asked.

Lissa grinned. "Yeah, I know that much."

"Then go. I'll be right behind you."

Lissa nodded, and set out for the field, where everyone else waited.

I walked over to Callie and rubbed her nose. "Ready?" I asked. Then, she did the funniest thing. She actually nodded at me. "Smart girl." I said, pulling myself up on her back. "Let's go." I told her, and she trotted out of the barn. I noticed Dimitri and Shadow on the far side of the field, so Callie and I trotted over.

"Hey cowboy." I said with a grin.

"Hey cowgirl." he replied, grinning back.

"Wanna go for a ride through the forest?" I asked.

"Sure . . . what about the others?"

"We can ask if they wanna come."

"Fine by me. Let's go." he said, starting to trot.

"Snore!" I exclaimed. "Come on, Callie. Let's run." I said, tapping her sides. She whinnied, and we were off.

"Oh, I see how it is." Dimitri yelled. He was soon right beside us as we galloped to where the others sat, chatting to eachother.

"Guys. Dimitri and I are going for a ride through the forest. Anyone wanna come?" I asked.

Adrian grimaced. "I think Eddie and I will stay here, just until I get used to riding on my own."

"Yeah, I'm going to stay with Adrian to help him out." Viktoria said.

"Liss?" I questioned, turning to her.

"I think I'll stay with Adrian and Viktoria. I need to get used to riding Aurora." she replied, her expression apologetic. I felt through the bond that she thought I'd be angry with her for not coming.

"Liss, don't worry. I'm not mad at you."

She smiled instantly. "Okay. Well, I guess we'll see you guys when you get back."

"See ya. Yo, Donnie! Can you open the gate?" I called.

"Sure can, Rose." Donnie replied, standing up from his lawn chair. He walked over and opened the gate, and the horses trotted out. We waved to everyone before disappearing into the forest.

We trotted along at a leisurely pace. "Today is honestly the perfect day." I said randomly.

"I agree. One of the happiest of my life." Dimitri agreed.

I grinned at him. "So what are we going to name our peanuts?" I asked.

"Well, we have three names for each gender, so it should be pretty easy." Dimitri replied.

"So if it's three girls, I was thinking Annika Viktoria Belikova, Skylar Vasilisa Belikova and Isabelle Nicole Belikova."

"I like those. They sound nice." Dimitri commented. "For three boys, I was thinking Jayce Adrik Belikov, Aleksandr Mason Belikov and Maksim Ivan Belikov."

My eyes watered at the second one. "I like all of them. What do the Russian names mean, anyway? Adrik, Aleksandr and Maksim?"

Dimitri grinned. "Adrik is Adrian in Russian. Aleksandr means 'to protect' and Maksim means 'the greatest.' "

I returned the grin. "I guess you like Adrian more than I thought." Dimitri rolled his eyes. "But I like the other two. Especially Aleksandr Mason."

"I knew you would, Roza."

"So, what if it's two girls and one boy?" I asked.

"Annika Viktoria Belikova, Skylar Vasilisa Belikova and Aleksandr Mason Belikov." Dimitri replied certainly. "And if it's two boys and one girl?" he asked.

"Annika Viktoria Belikova, Aleksandr Mason Belikov and Jayce Adrik Belikov." I replied, certain of my decision.

"Well I guess we have it all planned out then, don't we?" Dimitri asked.

"I guess we do." I replied, rubbing the tiny bump between my hips. "I can't believe I didn't notice the bump. I mean, I just thought that I was getting fat."

Dimitri burst out laughing. "Of course you did. Roza, you can be very unobservant sometimes."

I frowned. "What I don't understand is why you didn't tell me before today. I mean, you've know for what, a week now?"

Dimitri hung his head down in shame. "I'm sorry about that. I was worried about how you would react, so I took the cowardly way out and waited until it was necessary. I hope you're not angry with me."

"Well, I'm a little irked, but I'm not mad. If I were you, I probably would have done the same."

He looked up at me and smiled. "You're so understanding. It's one of the great things about you."

I smiled my man-eater smile at him. "Only one?"

"We've been over this before, Roza. Remember?"

I tapped my chin. "Nope. I don't recall that conversation. You'll have to refresh my memory."

Dimitri shook his head, still smiling. "You're strong, loving, fierce, dedicated, loyal, beautiful, and stunningly sexy. Not to mention passionate about everything you do, stubborn, and kinda hard-headed. All the things I love about you."

I groaned. "If I wasn't currently on this horse, I'd _so _be all over you."

"Well, it's not much farther until we're at the beach." he reminded me cheerfully.

"Mmm, you're right about that. How about we speed up a little so that we get there faster?"

"Fine by me."

Without another word, we galloped at full speed until we reached the beach.

Not bothering to take the time to get down properly, I jumped right off of Callie and ran over to Dimitri, who had already dismounted Shadow. I tackled him, and he fell back in the sand. I smothered him with kisses, placing them on every part of his face. "I. Love. You." I murmured, punctuating each word with a kiss on his inviting lips. He gripped my hips as I kissed him deeply.

After a few minutes of kissing, I rolled to the side. Dimitri kept his arm firmly around me, and I snuggled up to him. We laid in the sand and stared up at the puffy white clouds in the clear blue sky. We laughed as we pointed out shapes in the clouds, and he pressed a soft kiss to my forehead.

"Perfect day." he reiterated, hugging me closer to him.

I sighed happily. "Mmm, I agree. I don't know how it could get any better."

A weird look crossed Dimitri's face, but it was gone as suddenly as it came. I didn't question it, though. I was too happy to read into it too much.

We laid there for a few more moments before Dimitri sighed. "We should probably head back."

"Yeah, you're probably right." I said grudgingly.

Dimitri chuckled and stood up, then bent over to help me up. He pulled me up easily, then pulled me in for a sweet, gentle kiss.

As I turned to walk over to Callie, Dimitri caught my hand. "Wait." he said.

I raised my eyebrows at him. "What is it?"

He averted his eyes. "I was going to wait to do this, but I figure that now is as good a time as any."

"What is? Dimitri, what are you talking about?" I asked, silently begging him to look at me.

He took a deep breath and looked me in the eyes. "Rose, I love you so much. With my entire being. I have since I first laid eyes on you. I've always known you would be special to me. I just didn't know how special. I can't imagine a day without you. You're my one and only love. You've made me so happy with what you've given me already," he said, gesturing to my belly. "I'd be the happiest man alive if you'd give me one more thing."

I stared at him. "Dimitri, what are you getting at?" I asked, kinda dumbly.

It was then that he sank down on one knee, and my breath caught in my throat. He held my hand tightly in his. "I'd be the happiest man alive if you'd give me your hand in marriage. Rosemarie Hathaway, I love you. Would you do me the honour of marrying me and becoming Mrs. Belikova?" he asked, pulling a small box from his pocket. He opened it, revealing a stunning antique-looking ring.

I stood there, gaping like a fish. I couldn't speak; the intense shock and surprise that I felt in that moment froze me.

"Roza?" he said questioningly. "If you don't want to, it's okay. I'd understand." he mumbled, his face falling. He started to get up, but I pushed him back down.

"Stay where you are. Give me a minute." I murmured. I was still trying to fully process what happened.

"Take all the time you need."

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.

Suddenly, I broke into a huge smile. "Yes." I whispered.

I saw his eyes widen, before he smiled that breathtaking smile of his. "Yes?" he asked.

"YES!" I screamed happily. I was pretty sure that that scream could have been heard from miles around, but I didn't care. I was happy.

He stood up and threw his arms around me, picking me up and spinning me a few times.

Once he set me down, he took the ring out of the box and grabbed my left hand. "You have no idea how happy you've just made me, Roza." he said, slipping it on my third finger. I stared admiringly at the beautiful ring, loving the way that the sun sparkled off the large square-cut diamond set in the middle of smaller diamonds.

"If it's anywhere near how happy you've made me, then I have a pretty good guess." I replied. "Where did you get this ring? It's beautiful."

"Babushka gave it to me a few days ago. I guess it's been in the family for a few generations."

"Well I love it. Thank you, Dimitri." I said quietly, kissing him gently. When I pulled away, he rested his forehead on mine. "Lissa's gonna freak. Again."

Dimitri smirked. "She already knows."

My mouth fell open with a pop. "I knew she was hiding something! I couldn't figure it out though, because she was blocking me. Does anyone else know?"

"Well . . . everyone else." he replied, looking sheepish.

"You rascal, you." I said, poking his nose affectionately.

"Well, I had to know if everyone approved or not. By the way, they all did."

"Good to know. But you know, even if they didn't approve, it wouldn't have made a difference to me." I told him.

"I know. But at least we know that everyone is on board."

"When you say everyone, who do you mean?" I asked.

"Your friends, my family, your family . . ." he replied, trailing off.

I raised my eyebrows at him. "My family? When did you talk to them?"

Dimitri laughed. "I called your father. I wasn't about to ask you to marry me without asking him first. You _are_ his only daughter, after all."

I laughed at him. "You are _so _traditional."

He grabbed my hands and looked me in the eyes. "I just want to do this right."

I smiled warmly. "I know. And it's sweet of you." I told him. "But how does my mom know?"

Dimitri grimaced. "Speakerphone."

I burst out laughing. "What did they say anyway?" I asked.

"Your dad was generally happy about it, but he did throw a few threats my way. Your mom . . . that was another story." he said, still grimacing.

I squeezed his hands. "Aww Dimi, what did she say?" I asked.

He shuddered. "She started freaking out and yelling about how you couldn't get married this young. Luckily Abe was there to talk some sense into her, or else I don't think I would have even asked yet."

I let go of his hands and hugged him. "Don't be afraid of her. As long as I'm around, she's not laying a finger on you." I assured him.

"I know, but she's a very intimidating woman. A force to be reckoned with."

"So are you." Then I realized what I'd said. "Minus the woman part." I added.

Dimitri laughed. "Come on, Roza. Let's get back to the stables."

"If we must . . ." I said, sighing theatrically.

Dimitri grabbed me and pressed me to him. "I love you, soon-to-be Mrs. Rose Belikova."

"I've gotta say I like the sound of that." I replied breathlessly. The things this man did to me. "And I love you too."

He leaned down to capture my lips with his in one of the most loving kisses he'd ever given me. If he hadn't been holding on to me, I was sure I would have fallen. His lips were oh, so warm and gentle on mine, showing his true happiness. In that moment, everything felt right in the world.

"You're the best thing that's ever happened to me." he murmured, pulling away.

"The feelings are mutual, comrade." I replied, resting my head against his chest. Taking his hand, I walked over to the horses, Dimitri at my side.

Shadow and Callie stood together in the water, nuzzling eachothers faces. It was too cute.

"Look at them. Isn't that cute?" I asked Dimitri, grinning at the horses.

"It is. Leave it to us to pick the two horses to ride that like eachother." Dimitri replied.

I let go of Dimitri's hand and stepped out of my flats. I bent over to roll my pant legs up, then stepped into the water. It was a little chilly, but nothing I couldn't handle. I made my way over to the horses and grabbed Callie's reins. "Come on, girl. Time to go. You too, Shadow." I said, tugging lightly on the reins. Callie started walking, and Shadow followed. I led them to the edge of the water and stepped out, putting my flats back on and rolling my pant legs down. Dimitri grabbed Shadow's reins and led him out of the water, and I did the same with Callie.

Once we were ready, we mounted the horses and trotted back to the forest.

We trotted along in comfortable silence, both enjoying the other's company until we heard other hoofbeats. We exchanged a puzzled look before urging the horses into a gallop. And almost running into Jade and Viktoria.

"Whoa!" I said, pulling on Callie's reins to stop her. Dimitri did the same with Shadow, and soon Aurora and Lissa and Eddie and Adrian trotted up behind Viktoria and Jade.

"There you guys are!" Viktoria exclaimed.

"We were wondering what was taking you guys so long!" Adrian said.

"What were you guys doing?" Lissa asked.

I reached up to rub my eye with my left hand, making sure the ring was visible. Judging by the scream that came from Lissa, it was.

"OH MY GOD YOU PROPOSED!" she screamed, her words directed at Dimitri although her eyes were glued on my ring.

Dimitri chuckled. "Yes, I proposed."

"And you said yes?" she asked me.

I gave her an are-you-stupid look. "Nah. I'm just wearing the ring for no reason at all." I said sarcastically. "Liss, I love you to death but you can be so dense sometimes."

Lissa stuck her tongue out at me. "Whatever. I got excited. Sue me!"

I just shook my head. "Come on, let's just get back."

I looked over at Dimitri, who was grinning. I rolled my eyes and tapped Callie's sides, urging her into a gallop. I blew past Lissa and the others, and through the bond, I felt that Lissa didn't want to be outdone. I felt her giddiness as Aurora began to gallop. She smirked as she rode up beside me, and I smiled sweetly at her before yelling, "Go!" Callie lurched forward, going faster than before. I felt shock and awe from Lissa as she watched the glistening black mare shoot forward.

We rode as hard as we could until we arrived back at the stable. "Donnie! Open the gate!" I yelled as I neared the gate. Donnie sprung up and unlatched it just in time for Callie and I to blow through.

We rode straight to the middle of the field, where Callie reared up and whinnied triumphantly. I petted her neck happily, and she sunk back down to the ground.

When the others rode over to us, Adrian was grinning.

"That was a total Zorro moment, little dhampir. What with the black horse and all." he said, riding over to stand beside us.

I burst out laughing. "Only you would notice that, Adrian." I said, dismounting Callie. I grabbed her reins and led her to the barn so I could get her some water and take all of her gear off.

Once that was done, I helped Lissa do the same.

Dimitri and I sent the others to the car while we finished giving the horses water.

I turned to face him. "Dimitri, do you think we could go visit Mark and Oksana? I'm sure Liss and Adrian would love to meet them."

Dimitri seemed to think about it for a minute. "Yeah, I guess we could."

"Thanks, Dimi! Liss and Adrian will be so excited! But let's not tell them. It'll be a surprise."

"Sounds good to me, Roza. Now, let's say goodbye to Donnie and head out."

I nodded, and we left the stable. We walked over to the gate where Donnie stood, obviously waiting for us.

"See ya Donnie." I said, giving the older man a hug.

"See ya. And, congrats on both things, kiddo." he replied, grinning at me.

I rolled my eyes. "I guess I can let the kiddo comment slide this time. And thanks." I said, grinning back.

He pulled away from me to hug Dimitri. "You take care of her, kid. She's a special girl."

"I know. She's everything to me." Dimitri replied.

Donnie pulled away from Dimitri to look at both of us. "Those babies are lucky to have you two as parents."

I smiled, and Dimitri wrapped his arm around me. "Thank you, Donnie. And don't worry, we'll bring them to visit you once they're born." Dimitri said.

Donnie smiled, but it looked forced. "You better."

We turned our backs on him and walked to the car. Once we were inside, we exchanged a weird look.

"What was that all about? He seemed like he didn't want us to bring the babies over once they were born." I said, furrowing my eyebrows.

"I got that impression too." Dimitri agreed.

I shrugged. "Whatever. Let's go."

I put my CD in the CD player, and Broken Arrow blasted out of the speakers. I began singing along.

_What you do when you're stuck  
'Cause the one that you love  
Has pushed you away  
And you can't deal with the pain  
And now you're trying to fix me  
Mend what he did  
I'll find the piece that I'm missing  
But I still miss him  
I miss him, I'm missin' him  
Oh I miss him, I miss him  
I'm missin' him_

_And you're  
Sitting in the front row  
Wanna be first in line  
Waiting by my window  
Giving me all your time  
You can be my hero  
If only I could let go  
But his love is still in me  
Like a broken arrow  
Like a broken arrow_

_He's the thorn in my flesh  
That I can't take out  
He's stealing my breath  
When you're around  
And now you're trying to convince me  
He wasn't worthy  
But you can't complete me  
He's the part that I'm missing  
I miss him, I'm missin' him  
Oh I miss him, I miss him  
I'm missin' him_

_And you're  
Sitting in the front row  
Wanna be first in line  
Waiting by my window  
Giving me all your time  
You can be my hero  
If only I could let go  
But his love is still in me  
Like a broken arrow  
Like a broken arrow_

_What do you do  
When your heart's in two places  
You feel great  
But you're torn inside  
You feel love  
But you just can't embrace it  
When you've found the right one  
At the wrong time_

_And you're  
Sitting in the front row  
Wanna be first in line  
Waiting by my window  
Giving me all your time  
You can be my hero  
If only I could let go  
But his love is still in me  
Like a broken arrow  
Like a broken arrow_

"Ah, I love that song." I said when I finished.

"Me too." Lissa and Viktoria agreed.

We spent the rest of the car ride singing at the top of our lungs.

**Donnie POV**

When Rose and Dimitri told me they would bring the kids, I felt a pang in my heart. I knew that I would never get to see them. Not with the way my lung cancer was progressing.

The doctor had given me six months at the most to live. Was I scared? Of course. Was I sad? Sure. But I worried for my horses. Where would they go?

Well, I was worried until Rose and Dimitri came.

I saw how great they were with the horses. You'd have to be blind not to. That's why I'd decided that when I died, the horses would belong to them. I even wrote letters for them, telling them that I knew that my horses would be in great hands. I hoped to God that they'd take them. Judging by the smiles on their faces whenever they came here, I knew they would.

Sighing, I went to see my horses. They always brought me peace.

**Rose POV**

When we arrived, Lissa had no idea where we were, but Adrian did. He'd been here in a dream.

"Rose, where are we?" Lissa asked.

"Liss, welcome to Mark and Oksana's house." I announced grandly.

I felt Lissa's shock through the bond, which turned to happiness. She threw her arms around me from the back seat. "Thank you thank you thank you!" she squealed.

"No problem, Liss. I thought that you and Adrian might like to meet them and discuss spirit." I said, stepping out of the car. The others followed, and we all walked up to the small front porch. As I raised my hand to knock, the door flew open.

"Rose! Dimitri, Viktoria! It's so nice to see you all again. I see you've brought some interesting friends." Oksana babbled excitedly.

"How did you know we were here?" I asked, my eyebrows raised.

"She saw their auras before you all even got here." Mark clarified, coming up behind Oksana. "Welcome back. I see that you're uninjured this time." Mark observed with a grin.

I grinned back. "For once, yeah."

"Well come in, everyone. Make yourselves comfortable." Oksana said, ushering us inside.

We headed to the cozy living room and sat down. I noticed Oksana studying me intently, her eyes discreetly on my stomach. I grinned at her, and she blushed and looked away.

"Is something wrong?" I asked her.

"Not wrong, just . . . strange. I'm picking up multiple auras from you, and it's not making sense." she replied, her eyebrows furrowed.

"Well, that's probably because I'm pregnant."

The look of shock on Oksana's face was priceless. "Are you serious?"

I nodded. "With triplets." I announced.

Her jaw dropped. "Well . . . congratulations!" she said, probably still processing what I'd said.

"Before either of you ask, they're Dimitri's." I said, clutching Dimitri's hand.

Mark tilted his head to the side. "But how? It's not possible."

Dimitri sighed, and said one word: "Babushka."

This seemed to clear things up for Mark and Oksana. "Leave it to the two of you to transcend the rules." Mark murmured.

I laughed. "Yeah, I know. But now, for the matter at hand. I'm sure that the spirit users would like to discuss powers and such." I said, turning to look at Lissa and Adrian.

Oksana looked extremely happy. "Well, let's discuss our abilities."

I kinda tuned them out after that. I was content in fiddling with my newly acquired ring. Mark saw this, and came to sit beside Dimitri and I.

"I guess congratulations are in order for the two of you. For your children _and _your engagement."

I smiled warmly at the older man. "Thank you, Mark."

"I'm still in awe by the fact that the two of you can even have children together." he said.

"So are we. Believe me, we did _not _see this coming." Dimitri replied, resting his hand on my baby bump.

"So what exactly did Yeva say?" Mark asked.

I was going to leave this one to Dimitri, since he was the one she talked to. He explained about how it happened once before, and how our love is special. Mark's expression was one of wonder the whole time Dimitri talked.

"Well I am just amazed." Mark said once Dimitri finished talking.

I chuckled. "So are we, Mark. So are we."

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

We stayed at Mark and Oksana's until after dark, as the spirit users were practising. I was getting really hungry, so Dimitri announced that it was time to go. The Moroi grumbled a little, but got up anyway.

As we were walking to the car, Oksana called out to us. "You must come back before you go home to America!"

Lissa smiled at her. "Don't worry. We will."

Smiling, Oksana closed the door. We all got in the car, and the girls made Adrian sit in the middle.

"Why do I get the bitch seat?" he asked in a whiny voice.

"Because you're a whiny bitch." I replied, scowling. Then I took a deep breath. "Sorry. I'm cranky because I'm hungry and I have a headache."

"No worries, little dhampir." Adrian assured me.

We drove in silence for a while.

We were almost back in town when I felt a pang in my stomach. "You've gotta be kidding me!" I groaned.

"What?" Dimitri asked, looking concerned.

"Trust me when I tell you to keep driving. Don't stop." I told him, clutching my stomach.

Dimitri's eyes widened, and he pressed the gas pedal down further.

"Lissa, call Christian and tell him and Eddie to be waiting outside for us in case it comes to a fight." I said, turning to face Lissa. She looked scared, but pulled out her phone anyway and dialled Christian's number. I vaguely heard her talking to Christian and telling him to be ready.

"Vik, Dimitri gave you a stake, right?" I asked Viktoria. She nodded, her expression determined. "You might have to use it, so be ready."

"I'm so glad St. Basil's taught us how to use stakes last year." she said, gripping the holster on her belt loop that held her stake.

"So am I, because we definitely don't have time for a lesson. Are you good at fighting?"

"Is that even a question? I'm a Belikov, remember?" she said, smirking. I chuckled, but it was a tense chuckle. I continuously looked out the windows, trying to see something, but it was too dark outside.

When we drove into town, I felt slightly safer. There were streetlights, allowing me to see better.

Everyone was tense when we arrived back at the house. I pulled my stake from its holster and opened the car door. "Stay here." I whispered to Lissa and Adrian. They nodded, too scared to do much of anything. "I know you're here." I called loudly. The nausea hadn't left me, so I knew for sure that they were here.

"Roza!" Dimitri whisper-yelled at me. "Not the smartest thing to do."

"Dimitri, they're probably watching us. I know they're here because I can feel them. There's no point in trying to be stealthy."

I saw Eddie and Christian creep out of the house. I nodded discreetly to them.

Suddenly, the nausea got stronger, and I whirled around just in time to stake a Strigoi that had been sneaking up behind me. I observed with disappointment that it wasn't Nathan, and pulled my stake out.

"Oh Nathan, where are you?" I called in a singsong voice. I just wanted to get things over with and eat some goddamn dinner.

I heard a chuckle from behind me. I turned around to see Nathan slowly walking towards me. "Feeling bold I see, Rosie."

"Fuck off." I said, giving him the finger.

He growled. "We can make this easy, or we can make this hard. Which do you choose?"

"Hard, of course. Rose Hathaway doesn't go down without a fight." I shot back.

"You know, it's stupid of you to taunt me like this." he said, circling me.

"Too bad I'm stupid, then." My gaze flicked to Christian, and he nodded. I knew he would be ready when I needed him.

"You know, it's very brave of you to talk to me like this. You know I could kill you in the blink of an eye." he snarled.

"Then why haven't you?"

He laughed. "Because I'm enjoying this."

"They say that small minds are easily amused. I guess I know that it's true." Then I sighed. "Listen. I'm hungry, and I'm getting quite tired of you. So why don't you do us all a favour and scram?"

"But where's the fun in that?" he asked. He was suddenly standing in front of me.

"You're enjoying this, aren't you?" I asked.

He pinched my chin between his thumb and his index finger. "You have no idea." he replied.

"Christian, NOW!" I yelled. Suddenly, Nathan's hair burst into flames. He screamed in agony as the flames licked at his scalp. "My turn to enjoy this." I growled. I raked my stake across his cheek, and he snarled.

"You BITCH!" he exclaimed, spitting on me.

My rage levels went through the roof. "You did _not _just do that. Just for that, your death is going to be _extremely _painful." I said, stabbing him in the stomach. A bloodcurdling shriek escaped his lips, and I smiled sweetly. "Take that, bastard." I raked my stake across his collarbone, and he screamed again. "I hate you." I said, before driving my stake through his heart. I watched with satisfaction as his eyes widened, and he crumpled to the ground. I twisted my stake once to make sure he was dead.

I heard a high-pitched shriek. I looked over to the edge of the property, where who I assumed was Galina stood.

I beckoned to her with two fingers. "Come and get me, bitch."

She snarled in defiance before turning and running. "Coward." I muttered.

I felt a cold hand on my left arm. Rolling my eyes, I tried to jerk out of the Strigoi's grip, but she wasn't letting go. I punched her hard in the face, and she stumbled backwards. However, she quickly regained her balance and pounced at me, pushing me down. I struggled to roll her over, and after a few minutes, I managed it. I was getting weak, though. Making sure she was pinned, I drove my stake through her heart.

Tiredly, I stood up. I saw Viktoria grappling with a male Strigoi. I watched in fascination as she whirled around and plunged her stake into his heart. She was better than I thought.

I looked at Dimitri just as he was staking a Strigoi. I almost didn't notice the Strigoi trying to sneak up on me.

"Nice try, but I'm not that dumb." I said, spinning around. I faced a buff-looking male Strigoi. He narrowed his eyes at me, and sprung forward. I couldn't step out of the way fast enough, and he tackled me to the ground. My head hit hard, and I blacked out.

**:O gasp! What. Just. Happened? Is Rose gonna be okay? What about the babies? Review, and you'll find out. I know, I'm evil. But hey, at least Nathan is dead now :D but, there's still Galina... Queue scary music!**

**Let me know what you thought of the chapter in a review! The more reviews I get, the faster I'll update. I'm already halfway done the next chapter :D**


	21. Chapter 22

**A/N: Hello everyone! So, people weren't too happy with me for the last chapter...but it had to be done! And trust me, you'll all hate me even more after this one. I hope you enjoy this chapter, it's another long one! Yay for long chapters!**

**Disclaimer: As always, I don't own VA or any of its characters.**

_Enjoy! Sarah :D_

**CHAPTER **Nineteen

**Dimitri POV**

As I staked my last Strigoi, I noticed one sneaking up behind Rose. As I was about to warn her, she spun, facing the Strigoi. Yeah, my Roza was a badass.

I watched as the Strigoi lunged at her, moving so quickly that she didn't have time to step out of the way. I was in motion before her head hit the ground. However when it did, she stopped moving. Shit!

As the Strigoi was about to bite her, I tackled him. "You bastard!" I cried, punching his face. He was in a daze, and I took the opportunity to shove my stake into his heart.

When I was sure he was dead, I ran over to my Roza. Sure enough, she laid there, eyes closed, her breathing slow. I gently slid my arms underneath her and picked her up. Lissa and Adrian flew out of the car.

"Rose!" Lissa cried, running as fast as she could to where I stood, holding Rose. "What happened?" she asked.

"She hit her head and blacked out." I replied quietly. I should have made her stay in the car. She was in no condition for fighting.

Gently, Lissa reached out to touch Rose's head. Seconds later, she pulled away, looking satisfied. "She'll wake up soon. Let's get her inside." she said. I nodded and started walking. Lissa ran into Christian's waiting arms, and he hugged her tightly. We all headed inside.

When my mother saw me carrying Rose, her hand flew to her mouth. "What happened?" she asked. I could see that she was trying not to cry.

"A Strigoi tackled her and she hit her head pretty hard." I replied sadly, looking at Rose's beautiful face.

"Dimitri Belikov, how could you let her fight? What if the babies got hurt?" she scolded me.

"I don't know what I'd do. But Mama, she was out of the car before I could stop her."

Mama sighed. "You kids are going to give me a heart attack." she muttered, walking to the living room.

The whole family and all of Rose's friends sat there, looking worried. I looked at Viktoria and saw scratch marks on her cheek. "Vika, what happened to your cheek?" I asked.

She reached up to feel her cheek, probably just noticing the injury. "I don't even know. I didn't even feel it."

Adrian, who sat beside her, reached out to lay a hand on her face. The scratches disappeared, and Viktoria shot him a disapproving look. "Adri, you shouldn't have done that."

"But I wanted to," he countered, caressing her now unmarred cheek.

In that moment, I knew that I could trust Adrian Ivashkov with my sister. I saw his feelings clearly in his eyes, and I knew that he'd never do anything to hurt her.

Lissa shooed everyone off one of the couches. "Everyone, move. Dimitri needs to lay Rose down on the couch."

The people on the couch stood up immediately, and I thanked them. I walked over and gently laid Rose on the couch, and sat on the floor beside her. I held her hand tightly in mine, silently urging her to wake up.

Paul cautiously walked over to us. "Uncle Dimka, what's wrong with Aunty Rose?"

I sighed. "Aunty Rose hit her head, Paul."

Paul's brown eyes filled with tears. "Is she gonna be okay?"

I took his small hand in mine. "She's going to be fine, Paul. Why don't you go make her a get well soon card?" I suggested.

His face lit up. "Good idea, Uncle Dimka!" he replied, running upstairs to his room.

I turned back to Rose. She was breathing easier than she was outside, but she still hadn't opened her eyes.

I stroked her cheek. "Roza honey, wake up. Come on. Please?"

Her eyelids twitched. I took that as a good sign. I held her up slightly so that I could sit on the couch and let her head rest on my lap. Once we were situated, I began running my fingers through her hair and murmuring to her in Russian.

Minutes later, she shot up into a sitting position. In doing so, she smacked my head with her own because my face had been too close to hers.

"Ouch! Dammit, where is he? I'm gonna make him wish he never messed with me!" she growled, rubbing her forehead.

Gently, I pushed her back down on the couch. "Shh, Roza. I got him, don't worry."

She took a calming breath. "Good. These Strigoi need to learn to not mess with a hungry pregnant woman."

I chuckled. "Yeah, I know. You were great out there, Roza."

"Yeah, it was _so _cool when you caught that first one sneaking up on you!" Viktoria piped up, grinning at Rose.

"That it was, Vik. Hey, you did pretty great out there yourself!" Rose replied.

Mama ran over to us and threw her arms around Rose. "Don't you _ever _scare me like that again!" she sobbed.

"I'm sorry, Olena. I didn't mean to scare anyone." Rose replied sadly.

"And Rose, what were you thinking? You're pregnant. You shouldn't be fighting." Mama chastised her.

Rose looked sad. "I know, I just . . . I needed to kill him, Olena. You understand, right?"

"That's the one good thing that came from all of this. But it still doesn't justify the fact that you put yourself and your babies in danger."

"I know. If something would have happened to my peanuts . . . well, I don't know what I'd do with myself." A tear escaped Rose's eye, and I brushed it away with my thumb. "I have to shape up and be more careful for my babies."

Mama hugged her tighter. "Sweetie, don't cry. You just have to realize that it's not just you anymore. It's you and those babies."

More tears rolled down her face. "I know. I'm going to start taking better care of myself."

Mama stood up. "Good. Now, let's get some food on the table."

"Thank you." I mouthed to my mother. She nodded discreetly and walked to the kitchen. Mia got up and followed her.

Rose buried her face in my chest. "I'm sorry." she mumbled.

I stroked her hair. "It's okay, Roza. I'm not mad at you. You just scared me a little."

Lissa walked over to us. "Are you okay, Rose?" she asked, concern evident in her green eyes.

Rose sniffled. "Yeah, I'm fine. My head hurts a little from hitting Dimitri's head, but I'm fine."

Lissa smiled at her. "That's good." Then, she grimaced. "Do you think it's over now that Nathan is dead?"

Rose shook her head. "No. I bet it's only gonna get worse. Galina is really pissed at me for killing him. And, I may have called her a bitch . . ."

Lissa groaned. "Rose! Why would you do that?"

"Because I was pissed. I'm just so tired of all of this. I wanted to end it."

Lissa's expression turned sympathetic. "I know. But you shouldn't have said that. She's definitely gonna try even harder to get you."

"I won't let her. She's not getting near us or our babies." I said, scowling.

Rose grabbed my hand. "Do you think she'll follow us to Pennsylvania?" she asked.

"I don't know. I wouldn't put it past a Strigoi to go anywhere to get what they want." I replied.

Rose scowled. "I wish I could have done to her what I did to Nathan." she muttered.

"Yeah. You looked extremely pissed when he was fighting you. Especially when he spit on you." Christian commented.

"He spit on you?" I asked angrily.

Rose's upper lip twitched. "Yes. But he got what he deserved. By the way, thanks for lighting him up, Sparky. I owe you one."

Christian waved his hand dismissively. "Don't be silly. It was my pleasure."

Rose laughed. "Okay, Count Sparkula."

Christian raised an eyebrow. "Why do you call me that, anyway?"

"Because you're a vampire and it's funny." Rose replied, grinning.

Christian rolled his eyes. "You're odd. Did you know that?"

"Yep. And I'm proud of it."

Just then, Paul came running down the stairs, a folded piece of blue construction paper in his hand. "Aunty Rose! You're awake! I made you a card." he said, holding out the unevenly folded card.

Rose smiled. She grabbed the card and opened it. I saw that it said "Get well soon Aunty Rose!" and there was a little drawing of the two of them together.

"I love it. Thank you very much, Paul."

"Are you gonna keep it forever?" Paul asked.

"I promise I will. When I go back home, I'll put it on my wall." she assured him.

Paul jumped up and down excitedly. "Yay!" he squealed. Then he walked over to sit with Eddie. "Hey Eddie!"

"Hey, buddy." Eddie replied, ruffling his hair.

"Hey!" Paul squealed, trying to fix his hair. We all had to laugh; it was too funny.

We sat and chatted for about ten minutes before Mia came back into the room.

"Supper is ready." she announced.

"Thank God!" Rose exclaimed. She sprung up off of the couch and ran to the dining room, where Mama had started bringing the food out. I smiled indulgently at her and sat down next to her to eat.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

When we finished eating, we all decided to watch a movie. Lissa had brought some english movies, so we were going to watch one of those. We decided on "The Blind Side."

Viktoria put the movie on, and Rose and I snuggled up to eachother. I pulled a blanket over us, and we watched the movie.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

When the movie was over, Rose was snoring quietly at my side. I couldn't help smiling at the sight.

I picked her up and held her tightly. "Goodnight, everyone." I whispered, trying not to wake Rose up.

"Night." they whispered back.

I made my way up the stairs and into my room. As I was about to lay her down on the bed, her eyes opened. "Dimitri?" she whispered. She looked around, noticing where she was.

"You fell asleep and I carried you up," I explained.

"Oh."

I set her down so that she could put her pajamas on.

When we were both ready for bed, we sat down. She leaned her head on my arm, and I wrapped my arm around her.

"Do you think they got hurt?" she asked quietly.

I wasn't going to lie. "I don't know, Roza. I'm sure they're fine, though."

Her body began to shake. "I don't know what I'll do if they did get hurt. I won't be able to live with myself." she cried.

I rubbed her arm soothingly. "Shh Roza, shh. Don't worry. Just think positively." I murmured, although I was just as worried as she was. If our babies got hurt, I'd be devastated. But I wouldn't blame Rose. I could never blame her.

I held her as she sat there and cried. It broke my heart to see her so distraught, because she was never like this.

We stayed like that until the sobs quieted and the tears stopped. Rose wiped her eyes. "Sorry about that. I just needed to let it all out."

I hugged her tightly. "Don't apologize for that, Roza. Sometimes you need to cry."

"I know. I just hate being weak."

"Roza, you're not weak. You're the strongest person I know. Tears don't equal weakness."

She sighed and closed her eyes. "Not in my mind, comrade." she replied.

I tilted her chin up. "Oh Roza . . ." I murmured. I leaned in to press a soft kiss to her lips, and she responded instantly. Her lips moved with mine in a sweet, familiar way as she leaned in to me. Her arms went around my neck, and I revelled in the way that her touch made me feel.

She pulled away first, yawning hugely.

I smiled at her. "You're tired. Sleep, my Roza."

She yawned again. "Sleep sounds like a good idea right now." she agreed.

I got up to turn off the light. I crawled into bed beside her, pulling the blanket over both of us. "Goodnight, Roza. Sleep well, my love."

"Ditto." she murmured. I wrapped my arm around her, letting my hand rest on her belly. She rested her hand on top of mine, and we fell into a peaceful sleep.

**One week later**

**Rose POV**

Here we are. The day I've been dreading for the last three weeks that I've been in Russia. Our last full day here. We would be leaving tomorrow morning to go to our new home in Pennsylvania.

I would miss Russia horribly. By leaving, I'd be leaving Dimitri's family—including Viktoria, who was just as devastated as I was—Donnie, the horses, and Mark and Oksana. I would miss everyone terribly.

I thought about all of this as I laid in bed, staring at the ceiling. Suddenly, the now-familiar feeling of nausea struck me, and I ran to the bathroom to puke.

Yeah, morning sickness was a bitch.

I stood up and brushed my teeth once I was done puking my guts out. I was honestly getting tired of this.

Dimitri stumbled sleepily to the bathroom door. "Are you okay?" he asked.

"Same as every morning, comrade. I envy you; you don't have to deal with this shit." I grumbled, wiping my mouth.

He came up behind me and wrapped his arms around me. "Yeah, I am pretty lucky." he agreed, grinning.

"Wipe the grin off of your face. You're the one who did this to me." I said.

"Ah, but you're happy about it. You know you're excited to see our little peanuts."

I looked down to my small baby bump. It had grown slightly in the past week. "With the way they're growing, we won't be able to call them that anymore."

"I'll always call them that. That's what they are, after all."

"Yeah, I guess. Three more months and we'll be able to find out what they are." I said.

"Are you excited?" he asked.

"Of course. Are you?"

"Yeah. What's your guess on what they'll be?"

I thought about it for a minute. "I think they'll be two girls and one boy. How about you?"

"Two boys and one girl."

"Well I guess we'll see who's right in three months." I said, smirking.

"I guess so." he replied.

Grinning, I looked down at the ring on my left hand. I was still amazed that I would be Mrs. Rose Belikova. I remembered six days ago when we told Dimitri's family.

_~Flashback~_

It was the day after our Strigoi fight. Dimitri and I had gone down for breakfast after I finished puking. Olena was bustling around the kitchen, and Sonya and Karolina sat at the small kitchen table. I sat next to Karolina.

"Good morning, Rose. Good morning, Dimitri." she said, smiling at us.

"Morning Karolina. Morning Sonya." I mumbled. I was still pretty tired.

"Good morning, you two." Sonya replied. Dimitri nodded at his sisters.

I rested my elbow on the table and supported my head with my hand. I was trying hard not to fall asleep.

Karolina gasped, and turned to Dimitri. "Did you..?" she trailed off.

"Did I what?" he asked.

"Did you propose?" she asked. All eyes locked on my ring.

Dimitri grinned. "Yesterday, Karolina."

All three women squealed in delight. They all got up and crowded around the two of us, pulling us in for a group hug.

"I knew you'd say yes." Olena whispered in my ear. I grinned at her.

"Where did you propose? Tell us everything." Sonya demanded, a huge smile on her face.

"Well, when we were out horseback riding yesterday, we rode to the beach. We were laying down in the sand, finding shapes in the clouds. We got up to leave, and Dimitri grabbed my hand to stop me. He said some really sweet stuff, then got down on one knee." I gushed, unable to contain my excitement.

They sighed happily. "That's so romantic . . ." Karolina murmured.

"I know . . ." I replied dreamily.

"Well welcome to the family, Rose." Olena said, smiling warmly at me.

As I was about to thank her, I got the urge to puke. "Uh-oh!" I exclaimed, getting up and running up the stairs.

_~End of Flashback~_

Way to ruin a moment, right?

Smiling, I leaned back into Dimitri's embrace. "I propose that we scurry along downstairs to fetch some breakfast. The little darlings and I are quite famished," I said, doing a horrible imitation of a British accent.

Dimitri burst out laughing. "As you wish, my dear." he replied, imitating a British accent as well. He, of course, did it better.

I pouted. "You always do everything better than me." I whined.

He raised an eyebrow. "Like what?" he asked.

"Like that," I pointed to his eyebrow.

Dimitri shook his head, clearly amused. "Oh Roza, you're being childish."

"Whatever. I just want some damn breakfast." I muttered, slipping out of his arms and grabbing his hand. Together, we walked down the stairs to the sound of giggles in the kitchen. As soon as we walked in, we knew why.

Olena, Karolina, Sonya, Viktoria and Mia were huddled around Lissa, who had her phone in her hand. They were all laughing at a recording that Lissa was playing for them. Not just any recording—_the _recording.

All colour drained from Dimitri's face as I struggled not to laugh. Lissa was playing the recording of Dimitri singing 'Girls Just Wanna Have Fun' that I had sent her.

"What? How? When?" Dimitri stuttered. He turned to me. "How is that on Lissa's phone?" he asked.

I put a finger over my lips and smirked. "Guardian secrets, comrade." I whispered.

He narrowed his eyes at me. "Not cool, Rose. I can't believe you recorded me singing that and sent it to Lissa!" he exclaimed, clearly mortified.

I giggled. "Well, I never told her to show anyone."

"Oopsie!" Lissa trilled, grinning.

"I'm shocked, _princess._ I didn't think you had it in you!" Dimitri huffed. Everyone was still giggling.

I figured it was time to put a stop to it. "Okay, Liss. I think Dimitri's been embarrassed enough for one day."

Sighing, Lissa stopped it. "I guess . . ."

I put my hand on Dimitri's chest. "Aww Dimi, don't be embarrassed. At least none of the guys heard it!" I said, trying to cheer him up.

His expression was sullen. "I guess." he mumbled.

I pulled his face down to mine and kissed him sweetly. "Better?" I asked.

"Better." he agreed, smiling.

"Aww!" the girls chimed, grinning at us. "That is _so _cute!"

I rolled my eyes and grabbed a plate for the eggs that Olena made. Once I scooped a sufficient amount on my plate, I grabbed the maple syrup from the fridge and sat down. Everyone—other than Lissa and Dimitri—made a weird face at me as I drenched my eggs in the sugary goodness.

"Don't knock it till you try it." Dimitri told his family, repeating my exact words from before. He sat down next to me with his plate of eggs. "Can you pass the syrup, Rose?" he asked.

"Sure." I replied sweetly. He completely drowned his eggs in syrup, and his family stared at him in shock.

"That is the most unhealthy thing that I've ever seen you eat, Dimka." Olena murmured.

"Roza is rubbing off on me. She has the ability to turn something healthy into something horrible for you but tastes too good to resist." Dimitri said proudly, grinning at me. Then, he grimaced. "I probably shouldn't be proud of her for that."

"This is only the beginning." I scoffed. "Just wait until you live with me."

Yeah. We would be living with eachother at court. It was originally going to be Lissa, Eddie and I in one house and Christian and Dimitri in the one next door, but that obviously changed due to the babies. Now, Dimitri and I would live in the one that I was going to live in anyway, Lissa and Christian were going to live in the one that was meant for Dimitri and Christian, and Eddie would be living a few houses down from Lissa's, along with Mia. Which, I of course thought was absolutely adorable.

The queen would probably have a conniption, but I honestly didn't care. I was going to live with my family whether she liked it or not.

Dimitri chuckled. "I can't wait." he murmured.

"Me either, comrade. Me either." I replied.

"Where did that nickname even come from?" Viktoria asked.

I smiled. "It was the first name I ever called him." I said. I still remembered that day perfectly. "Believe it or not, I actually despised him when we first met." I told them.

Olena looked shocked. "Why?"

"She was angry at me for dragging her and Lissa back to the academy after their little two year disappearance." Dimitri explained.

"Yeah, I could see her getting angry at you for that. When did it change?" Viktoria asked.

Dimitri and I exchanged a look. "Training." we replied in unison.

"Was it instant?" Karolina asked.

"For me it was. I'm not too sure about him." I said, pointing my thumb at Dimitri.

"It was." he assured me. "I just ignored it."

"Why?" Karolina asked.

"Because I was her mentor, not to mention I'm seven years older than she is. We both could have gotten into a lot of trouble. Plus, we both would have been guarding Lissa."

" 'If I let myself love you, I won't throw myself in front of her. I'll throw myself in front of you.' " I murmured, quoting him.

He reached up to cup my cheek. "None of that matters now. You're the most important thing in my world. Well, you and the babies. And Roza, I can't believe you remember my exact words!"

"I remember everything about you."

Viktoria made gagging noises, and both Dimitri and I rolled our eyes.

"You two have been through so much . . . it's nice to see that you're finally getting the happy ending you deserve." Sonya said, tearing up. I began tearing up as well, and stood to hug the pregnant woman.

"Thank you." I whispered through the tears.

"No problem, sis." Sonya replied, wiping her eyes.

"Damn hormones!" I whisper-yelled, laughing.

"I hear ya!" Sonya agreed, laughing with me.

Just then, the boys stumbled sleepily down the stairs. Eddie looked the most alert of all, but not by much. Christian's hair stuck up in every possible direction, and Adrian looked like he was going to fall asleep standing up. Just by looking at him, I knew that he was badly in need of a coffee.

Smiling to myself, I poured him a cup and handed it to him. "You look like you need it, Ivashkov."

He took a huge gulp. "Thanks, little dhampir."

I could hear Lissa making fun of Christian's hair, and I giggled. Viktoria walked over to Adrian and I.

"Aww Adri, you look horrible!" she exclaimed.

"And you look beautiful, as always." he replied, grabbing her hand and kissing it.

Viktoria giggled. "Thank you."

Rolling my eyes, I sat back down to finish my eggs.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

After breakfast, I went up to get dressed. I chose a red strapless shirt with a black pleated mini-skirt, a black cardigan and red heels.

When I walked down the stairs, all of the guys whistled at me, earning an eye roll from me.

Dimitri pulled me to him. "Sexy mama." he whispered in my ear, making me shiver.

"Well, I'm not going to have this body for much longer so I'm showing it off while I still can. Plus, Lissa didn't really pack my more sensible clothes." I said, shooting Lissa a look that said _"Yeah, I know why you did that." _She grinned.

_You caught me, Rose. _She said through the bond.

"It's not that hard to figure out, Liss." I replied, grinning back.

Olena looked puzzled. "Bond." I explained. I knew she was wondering why I said that to Lissa when she didn't say anything out loud.

She nodded. "Oh. Makes sense." she said.

I smiled at her, then turned to Dimitri. "What are we doing today?" I asked.

"Well, I thought we'd visit the horses and Donnie one more time, go to the beach for a swim and then have everyone go out for a fancy dinner." he replied.

I jumped into his arms. "Oh Dimitri, that sounds perfect!" I squealed.

"I knew you'd like the idea. So go pack a bag with swimming essentials. All of you," he said, gesturing to my friends. We all dashed up the stairs and I grabbed my bag. I packed my zebra print bikini, black flip-flops, a beach towel, some tanning lotion and my sunglasses. I hadn't even noticed Dimitri behind me until he spoke.

"I can't wait to see you in that bikini, Roza." he growled, spinning me around to face him. I didn't even get to respond; his lips were on mine too quickly. They were fierce and passionate on mine, and I responded eagerly. His tongue found its way into my mouth, and his breath mingled with mine. Our tongues battled, neither of us wanting to lose the battle for dominance.

"My eyes! My poor virgin eyes!" Lissa wailed.

"Ugh, I'm with Liss. I could have gone my whole life without seeing that." Viktoria muttered.

I broke away from Dimitri to grin at them. "Oh, stop being such children." I said. "And Liss, there is nothing _virgin _about your eyes." I added with a smirk. She stuck her tongue out at me and laughed.

"I need new friends." Viktoria mumbled.

"Aww Vik, you know you love us." Lissa joked, poking Viktoria in the side.

Viktoria grinned. "Yeah, I guess I do."

"Anyways," Lissa said, dragging it out. "We came to tell you that everyone is waiting downstairs. So let's move!"

"Yes, _mom._" I said jokingly, grabbing my bag off of the bed. Dimitri grabbed his, and we took off down the stairs where everyone was waiting at the door.

We all walked out to the van, putting our bags in the trunk. I begged Dimitri to let me drive, so he did. He sat in the passenger seat. Lissa, Christian and Eddie sat in the middle seats and Viktoria, Adrian and Mia sat in the very back seats.

I turned out of the driveway and cranked my music, earning a disapproving look from Dimitri. I smiled sweetly in return and put my sunglasses on, which I grabbed from my beach bag before putting it in the trunk.

For forty-five minutes, we sang at the top of our lungs and laughed at eachother.

When we pulled into Donnie's, he grinned.

"Hey kids." he greeted us.

"Hey Donnie." we replied in unison, stepping out of the car and walking over to him. Everyone had been here at least once, so they were familiar with Donnie and vice-versa.

Donnie put a hand on my stomach. "Hey babies." he cooed.

"You're such a sap." I joked, but I was actually touched—no pun intended—by the gesture.

He enveloped me in a hug. "I try." he said, grinning hugely. I rolled my eyes and walked to the field, where all of the horses were grazing. As soon as Callie saw me, she galloped over, a loud whinny coming from her mouth.

"I'm glad to see you too, girl." I said, stroking her mane. Tears sprung to my eyes as I remembered again that this would be the last time that I saw her for a few months. I buried my face in her neck and cried a little.

Sensing that I was upset, she made a soft grunting noise in my ear, as if telling me that it would be okay. "I'm going to miss you so much." I cried, petting her softly. She whinnied quietly in response and nudged my hand.

I wiped the tears away and continued stroking her flowing mane. "Be good for Donnie, okay?"

She did her little horsy nod, making me laugh. "Smart girl." I cooed. She nodded her head towards the barn, and I knew what she wanted. "Sorry girl," I murmured. "I'm not dressed for riding today." She grunted at me, and I rubbed her nose. "Come on, let's go see everyone else." I said, looping my fingers through her halter. We walked towards the others together, her walking leisurely at my side. I felt a hard nudge on my back, and I found myself falling forward. Luckily, I was still holding on to Callie's halter, and she didn't let me fall.

I turned to glare at what I knew would be the brown and white paint horse. "You rascal!" I exclaimed. I let go of Callie's halter to put my hands on either side of his head. "Eddie, you can't do that anymore. You might hurt my little babies." I said. He nudged my stomach with his nose. "Yes. In there. They might get hurt if you push me down." I told him. He seemed to understand, because his head bobbed up and down rapidly.

I looked between him and Callie. "You are two of the smartest horses I've ever seen!"

Whinnying, they both took off across the field to where the others were gathered. I jogged lightly behind them, enjoying the slow pace.

Suddenly, I was swept off the ground. Tanned arms hoisted me up, and I screamed. "Put me down, Dimitri Belikov!"

"Sorry, I can't do that." he replied. I could just imagine the smirk that I was sure would be on his face.

I growled at him, but said nothing else. He was _so _gonna get it when I got down.

He put me down when we arrived at the others. I turned to face him, smiling sweetly. He smiled back, oblivious to what I was about to do.

I held my arms out for a hug, which he gladly accepted. When I was sure that he wouldn't expect it, I swung my knee up as hard as I could, effectively hitting him in the crotch. His arms loosened from around me and he fell to the ground, clutching himself.

"Next time, you should really put me down when I tell you to." I growled before stalking off. I heard Callie snort at him before following me.

I went all the way to the barn, Callie trailing behind me. I grabbed a horse brush and began furiously brushing her mane, although I was careful not to hurt her. It calmed me somewhat, and I brushed her more gently. Looking at her mane, I got an idea. I removed her halter and began weaving her mane into a beautiful french braid, tying it with an elastic that I kept on my wrist when I finished.

"Pretty girl . . ." I cooed, rubbing her muzzle. She whinnied quietly in thanks, and nuzzled my face.

I took a deep breath. "I was being a little irrational, wasn't I?" I asked her. Her large head bobbed up and down, and a chuckle escaped my lips. "I hope I didn't hurt him too much . . ." I whispered. I slipped her halter back on her head and led her out of the barn. I almost ran right into Dimitri.

"I'm sorry . . . no I'm sorry . . . no _I'm _sorry . . . stop it!" we exclaimed at the same time. I let go of Callie's halter and she ran over to join Shadow.

"Did I hurt you?" I asked worriedly. Tears pooled in my eyes.

"I'm fine. Don't worry." he assured me, pulling me in for a hug.

"These mood swings are horrible, Dimi." I mumbled into his chest.

He smoothed my hair. "I know, honey. It's okay, though."

I pulled away to look at him. "Whatever I say to you when I'm angry, you have to know that I don't mean it. Just for future reference." I said.

"Good to know."

"Dimitri, I'm so sorry for what I did. How about when we get home tomorrow night, I'll kiss it better?" I asked seductively, batting my eyelashes.

Dimitri grinned. "I like the sound of that, Roza."

I grabbed his hand. "Let go back to the others. When are we going to the beach?"

"In like, twenty minutes. We're not going to the one that the forest leads to. It's not very ideal for swimming." he replied.

I tried to keep the disappointment from my face. That beach was a special place, since it was where I agreed to marry Dimitri. "Sounds good, cowboy." I said.

If he picked up on my disappointment, he didn't show it. We arrived over to where the others stood, staring at us.

"What?" I asked. 'Why are you staring at us?"

"No reason." Adrian replied, grinning.

I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, right. You were all expecting a big fight, weren't you?"

Their guilty expressions answered my question.

"Lucky for me, Dimitri is very forgiving and understanding." I said, grinning at Dimitri.

"Well Rose, I can see that the next few months will be interesting." Christian commented.

"That they will, Christian. So I suggest that you watch your back." I told him.

He looked shocked. "Oh my God, you called me Christian. I think I need to sit down!" he exclaimed, swaying theatrically.

"Pfft. I don't always call you names, you know." I said. I looked over to see Donnie admiring Callie's mane.

"Rose, did you do this?" he asked.

"Yeah, it calmed me down. I hope that's okay." I replied, sounding unsure.

Donnie grinned. "It's fine, Rose. Don't worry, I like it."

My lips pulled up at the sides. "Good. I think it suits her."

"I agree." Donnie replied.

We spent the next twenty minutes talking amongst ourselves. It was time to leave and go to the beach, and I felt myself getting upset. I didn't want to leave Donnie and the horses.

"Roza, it's time to go." Dimitri said, his sadness mirroring mine. He loved Shadow and Donnie and the other horses.

I felt a tear roll down my cheek and I quickly caught it. "I don't want to leave." I whispered sadly. I stood with Callie, stroking her neck. The others had already gone to the van and were now waiting for us.

Dimitri reached out to catch another tear on my face. "I know. I don't want to either."

"When will we come back?" I asked, turning my gaze back to Callie.

"I was thinking that we could visit in a few months, maybe after we know the genders of the babies so that we could tell my family in person." he replied.

I sniffled as more tears fell from my eyes. "I'm going to miss you so much, girl. Be good. I'll see you soon." I said to Callie. I turned away from her and ran to Donnie. I couldn't stand with her anymore; it hurt too much.

I basically tackled Donnie and hugged him tightly.

He patted my back soothingly. "Shh kiddo, don't cry." he murmured.

I pulled away to look at him. "We'll come back in a few minutes to visit, okay?" I said.

Donnie smiled. "Sure, Rose. Listen . . . I'll miss you. Take care of yourself and those babies."

I sniffled. "I will. And Donnie, I'll miss you too. Promise to keep in touch with us?" I asked.

"Of course." he replied.

I pulled him in for one more hug. "Bye, Donnie." I mumbled sadly.

"See ya, kiddo."

I rolled my eyes and attempted to smile. I had to keep smiling until I got to the van.

As I walked away, I heard Dimitri and Donnie quietly exchanging goodbyes. I hurried to the van and sat down, trying to collect myself.

"Rose, are you okay?" Lissa asked quietly from behind me. Concern flooded through the bond.

I wiped my eyes and cleared my throat. "Yeah, I'm just sad to be leaving Donnie and the horses." I replied.

"It'll be okay, Rose. You'll see them again soon." Viktoria said, reaching from behind me to lay a hand on my shoulder.

"I know. I'll just miss them." I said, just as the van door opened and Dimitri got in. He started the van and with one last wave, we drove off.

I shouldn't have looked back. It's never good. What I saw broke my heart.

Callie stood at the gate, watching the van drive away. Donnie walked over to pat her, and he looked so sad. I couldn't help the fresh tears that fell down my face at the sight of them.

We drove in silence for a while, but people in the van started chatting quietly with eachother. I'd finally calmed down, and I silently took Dimitri's hand in mine as he drove us to the beach.

It took a while to get there, but it was worth the wait. It was a beautiful beach, complete with soft sand and sparkling blue water. There was a changing area, a canteen, and many families. Children were happily building sand castles or eating ice cream, while many played in the water.

A wide grin spread on my face. As soon as Dimitri turned the van off, I jumped out and grabbed my stuff from the trunk, Lissa, Viktoria and Mia right behind me. We didn't bother waiting for the guys.

We went to the female changing area and grabbed four stalls. We undressed and put our bathing suits on quickly, wanting to get out in the water.

"Oh my God guys, I love your bikinis!" I squealed. Lissa wore a hot pink halter top bikini that tied on the sides of the bottoms, Mia wore red and black polka-dot bikini with thin straps and Viktoria wore a leopard print strapless bikini.

"Thanks!" they replied in unison. I walked over to stand beside Viktoria.

"We're the animal print girls." I observed, laughing.

"I guess we are." she replied, grinning.

"The guys better be ready by now." Mia said, grabbing her bag and her towel. The rest of us did the same, and I put my sunglasses on as we walked outside.

Luckily, the guys _were _ready. We watched as their jaws simultaneously dropped at the sight of us. I walked over to Dimitri.

"Let's find a place for our stuff. I need you to put some sunscreen on my back." I told him, taking his hand. Together, the group found a place big enough for all of our stuff, and I laid my beach towel down and stretched out. I handed Dimitri the sunscreen, and I felt the coldness as he squirted it on my back. He began rubbing it in gently, and I sighed in content. Once he finished, he turned so that I could do the same for him. When I finished, he did the rest. I'd already put it everywhere else in the changing room, so I was ready to go in the water.

Once he finished, I took my sunglasses off and laid them on my towel. I stood up and, taking Dimitri's hand, the two of us ran full speed into the clear freshwater. The cold was a shock, but I soon got used to it. Dimitri, however, was freaking out, telling me that I'd understand if I were a guy. I noticed my other guy friends doing the same.

I snuck up behind Christian, making sure he couldn't hear me. Once I was right behind him, I gave a hard push. He fell under the water and came up screaming like a little girl.

I smirked at him. "Aww, is the water cold, Christian?" I asked with fake concern, earning a death glare from him. "Hey, you were warned. I told you I'd get you when you least expected it."

He stood up and rolled his eyes. He held his hand up for a high-five. "Well played, Hathaway." he said, grinning. He took it like a man, and was a good sport.

I returned the high-five. "Thanks, Sparky." I replied before sinking under the water. I figured I'd get it over with, and it wasn't even that bad. I swam around, enjoying the cool water in contrast to the hot day. I swam over to Dimitri and popped up in front of him.

"Do you enjoy tormenting people, Roza?" he asked, an eyebrow raised.

"Very much." I replied, wrapping my arms around him. "Come on, big boy. Time to go underwater."

Dimitri grimaced, but followed me to deeper water. He gasped as he got to waist-deep water, and I couldn't hold back the laugh. We continued a little further until I was at my collarbone and he was at his ribs.

"Come on, duck under." I encouraged him. I grabbed his hands to mine, counted to three, and slid under the water, pulling him with me.

I saw his shocked expression, which relaxed quickly. I grinned under the water at him and swam away past the point where I could touch the bottom. He swam beside me, and we swam up for air together.

"That was cold." Dimitri said, pouting.

I rolled my eyes at him. "Baby."

He growled and pulled me to him. "I am no baby, Roza."

"Mmm, I think you are, cowboy."

He narrowed his eyes, and I knew what he was about to do. I sucked in air and held it right before he tackled me under the water. Once we were under, he smirked at me. I rolled my eyes at him and started swimming back to shore, but he grabbed me by my waist and pulled me to him. He pressed his lips to mine and kissed me. It was the weirdest kiss we'd ever shared, being underwater and all, but it was filled with love.

We pulled away together, needing air. We swam up to the surface, taking deep breaths. I rested my forehead on his and wrapped my arms around his neck. "I love you." I murmured.

"I love you too." he replied. I pecked him on the lips before ducking back underwater and swimming towards the shore. I knew he was behind me. I swam as fast as I could, wanting to see how fast I could get to shore. It took about a minute for me to get to water that went up to my waist. I spotted Lissa a few feet away, so I snuck up behind her. I knew that Christian saw me, but he didn't stop me. I grabbed Lissa and pulled her down with me, giggling as she freaked out and screamed. I pulled her right under and she flailed around, trying to break free. I let her go and we both popped back up to the surface where she turned to glare at me, looking like a drowned rat because of the hair that clung to her face.

"Rose! You suck!" she screeched.

I grinned. "Meh. You love me anyway."

Lissa rolled her eyes and pushed her hair away from her face. "Whatever. Let's go to the canteen." she muttered, walking towards the sand. Still grinning, I followed her. We grabbed some money from our bags and made our way to the canteen. I left the ordering up to Lissa, since my Russian skills were still pretty horrible. She knew way more than I did. I'd told her beforehand that I wanted some pop, chips, chocolate and a freezie. Her eyes widened at my hefty order, but she told the person behind the counter anyway. All she got was some water and a freezie.

We walked back to where our towels were, snacks in hand. We sat down side by side, enjoying our snacks. I looked out to the water where our friends were and saw Dimitri holding Viktoria up in the air. She had a look of pure terror on her face as she struggled to get down, and I couldn't help but laugh. I saw Lissa look as well, and she started laughing with me. Dimitri walked to deeper water and threw her in before sinking under the water to swim away before she could get to him. I chuckled and took a bite of my chocolate bar. Dimitri emerged from the water and made his way over to where Lissa and I sat.

"You're mean. You know that, right?" I asked him, grinning.

He chuckled. "I'm allowed to be mean to her. She's my little sister, after all." he replied, a devilish grin on his face. He swiped my chocolate bar from my hand and took a bite, earning a death glare from me.

"Uh, Dimitri? Do you have a death wish or something?" Lissa asked, her eyes wide.

I stood up, kicked Dimitri in the shin, grabbed my chocolate bar and sat back down, taking a bite. Dimitri sat next to me, clutching his shin.

"If you wanted a bite, you should have just asked." I said calmly, taking another bite of my chocolate bar.

"Good to know." he replied, rubbing his shin. I leaned over to kiss it gently.

"Better?" I asked.

"Better." he agreed. I held the bag of chips out to him.

"Would you like some chips?" I asked.

"Sure, Roza." he replied, grabbing a handful of chips.

I held the bag out to Lissa, and she took a few chips as well. We all sat there and munched as we looked at the water.

**Viktoria POV**

After Dimitri threw me in the water, I was pissed. I knew that he swam away, and I didn't bother following him. I figured that I'd just get him back later.

I stood up and rubbed my side. When he threw in, I belly-flopped and it hurt like hell. He was _so_ going to get it.

Adrian swam over to me. "Viki, are you okay?" he asked, his emerald eyes showing his concern.

"I'm fine. God, I'm gonna get him!" I growled.

Adrian rested his hands on the sides of my face, and my breath caught in my throat. We _still_ hadn't kissed, and it had been a week, so I was hoping he'd finally just kiss me!

He leaned in, and my breathing sped up in anticipation. But he didn't kiss me; he just rested his forehead on mine.

I tried my best not to feel disappointed, because I knew he could see my aura, but I'm not sure how I did. He didn't say anything, but he probably wouldn't have anyway.

Sighing, we swam back to shore, where everyone else had gathered. They set up a large umbrella for the Moroi to sit under for shade, since the sun was starting to take it's toll on them. Rose was sunbathing on her towel, a peaceful expression on her face as she soaked up the sun. Dimitri sat beside her, eating some chips. I grabbed my towel and laid beside her, eager to get a tan myself.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

**Rose POV**

We stayed a little longer after that. We all went back in the water for a little bit, where I'd started a major water fight between all of us. It was pretty funny, especially when Lissa tackled Christian into the water.

We all got changed and headed back to Dimitri's house so we could get ready to go out for dinner. I needed to take a shower and find something suitable to wear out to dinner.

As I was looking through my clothes, Lissa pulled me to the room she shared with Mia.

"I brought something for you. I figured you'd need it for something or other." she said, pulling a bag from her suitcase. She held it out to me, and I looked inside to find something black and sparkly. I pulled it out, and saw that it was a strapless black dress that had a purple sash and sparkles all over the lower half. I gasped at the sight of it; it was beautiful!

I set the dress on the bed and pulled Lissa in for a hug. "You're the best!" I squealed.

"I know I am." she joked, hugging me tight.

"You always think of everything, don't you?" I asked.

"Hey, I just like to be well prepared." she replied.

"Well, thanks. I owe you one." I said honestly.

Lissa rolled her eyes. "You don't owe me anything. Now get in the shower and we can do our makeup once you get out."

"I'm going I'm going." I muttered, turning and walking back to Dimitri's room. I grabbed my robe, a black strapless bra, black panties, and some slippers. I then made my way to the bathroom, turned the water on, stripped out of my clothes and got in the shower. The warm water felt nice on my skin after a few hours of really cold beach water.

I got out of the shower about fifteen minutes later. I felt nice and clean. I put my bra and panties on, then my robe, and then slipped on my slippers. I wrapped my hair in a towel, and left the bathroom. I grabbed my makeup bag from Dimitri's room and then made my way to the end of the hallway. I knocked on the door and waited for Lissa to open it.

Seconds later, she was at the door. "Come on, we have to get you ready!" she said, ushering me in. I saw that Viktoria and Mia were in there as well. I guess we would all be helping eachother get ready tonight.

Lissa pulled the towel off of my head and starting brushing my hair. Once she had all of the tangles out, she grabbed her hair dryer out of her suitcase, plugged it in, then started blow drying my hair. It took a while, since my hair was so long, but she dried it completely.

Mia came over and started straightening my hair, while Lissa moved to do Viktoria's makeup. The two of them were an amazing, efficient team. They really knew what they were doing.

Once my hair was pin straight and Viktoria's makeup was done, Lissa and Mia switched places again. Lissa began french braiding a small section of my hair to look like a headband. It was beyond cute, and so perfect. When she finished with that, she started on my makeup. She grabbed her huge collection of eye shadow and started scanning through the colours, looking for the perfect one. After a few minutes, she finally decided on a pretty purple colour to go with the purple on my dress. Once she applied it, she put black eyeliner on my bottom lid and sparkly liquid eyeliner on the top lid. She then curled my eyelashes and dabbed on some mascara. She put some concealer under my eyes to hide any bags I had, then finished off with some foundation. I looked in the mirror when she was done, and my breath caught in my throat. I looked beautiful!

I jumped out of my chair to hug Lissa as tight as I could. "Thank you thank you thank you!" I squealed.

"Can't . . . breathe . . . bones . . . being crushed . . ." she gasped out. I loosened my grip on her.

"Sorry." I said timidly. "Did I hurt you?" I asked.

She shook her head. "Nah, I'm fine. You just cracked my back." she said with a grin.

I walked over and grabbed my dress off the bed. "Nobody look, I'm getting dressed and if you look, you're all pervs." I said. They all turned around and covered their eyes, so i took the robe off and slipped my dress on. I couldn't zipper it myself, though. "Can someone zipper this? It's okay to look, I'm decent now."

Viktoria got up and came over to me, grinning. "I'll do it." she volunteered. She still hadn't gotten her dress on, and it made me wonder what she was gonna wear.

"Thanks, Vik! What are you wearing?" I asked as I turned around. She zipped me up, and I turned to face her again.

"My dress is in my room. I'm gonna need you to come with me and zip me up." she told me. I nodded and slipped my robe over my dress. If Dimitri was in the hall, I didn't want him to see me yet. We slipped out into the hallway and ran straight to Viktoria's room.

Once we were inside, she locked her door. I took my robe off, wanting to admire myself in her full-length mirror. All of the guys were gonna be drooling over us girls tonight!

Viktoria pulled a hot pink strapless dress with a black sash out of her closet. There was a black rose on the sash, and a bit of crinoline underneath. It was absolutely gorgeous, and it would look stunning on Viktoria.

"Oh my God, Vik! I absolutely _adore _your dress!" I squealed. God, I was doing a lot of that lately . . .

Viktoria grinned. "Thanks. I love yours too!" she replied. "Now turn around unless you wanna be a perv." she added.

Rolling my eyes, I turned around. "Adrian is gonna die when he sees you in that!" I gushed. I heard Viktoria laugh behind me. "It's true, Vik." Then, I completely changed the subject. "You know what? Too many people call you Vik. I wanna be different."

"Well what else would you call me?" she asked. I could hear that she was amused by this.

I thought about it for a minute. "Hmm . . ." Then, it came to me. "Ohmigod, I'll call you Tori! C'est parfaite, mademoiselle Tori!"

"You can turn around." she said. I did, and saw an amused expression on her face. "Tori? I could get used to that." she said with a grin. Then, she added, "And what the hell was that? French?"

I laughed. "I know a little bit."

Viktoria raised an eyebrow. "What the hell did you say?" she asked.

"I said, 'It's perfect, miss Tori!' "

"Oh. I see." Viktoria replied.

"Et Tori, tu est tellement belle ce soir. J'aime beaucoup ton jupe!" I said. The puzzled look on her face told me that she had no sweet clue what I'd just said. "I said, 'And Tori, you look so nice tonight. I really love your dress!' "

Viktoria smiled. "Thanks. And this french is starting to get annoying."

"Too bad. Je t'aime, ma petite soeur." I told her.

"Really? You're gonna keep talking french?" she asked, exasperation clear in her voice.

I faked a sad face. "I just said 'I love you, my little sister,' but I can just take it back."

Viktoria hugged me. "Aww Rose, I love you too. So . . . je t'aime . . . too?"

I laughed. "Je t'aime aussi, Tori."

"Gotcha. Hey, since you have a special nickname for me, I need a special nickname for you."

"As long as it's not Rosie." I replied.

"Okay . . . how about Ro-Ro? No one else calls you that."

I tilted my head to the side. "Ro-Ro . . . yeah, I can deal with that. Now come on, let's get back to the guest room and see if Liss or Mia need our help with anything."

"Okay." Viktoria replied, slipping her robe on over her dress. I did the same, and we left her room and walked down the hall. I knocked on the door.

"Come in!" Mia and Lissa called in unison. I opened the door and walked in, followed by Viktoria. Lissa was in the process of curling Mia's hair into perfect little ringlets with her straightener. When she saw Viktoria's dress, she got a little excited and grabbed the wrong end, effectively burning herself.

"Ouch! Damn, that hurt!" she growled, clutching her hand. "I'm going to see Adrian. I'll be right back. I need one of you to keep doing Mia's hair." she said before stalking out the door.

"You better do it, Rose. I don't think I can do it." Viktoria said.

I walked over and picked up the straightener off of the small table. I got to work on Mia's hair and finished it before Lissa came back.

"Thanks, Rose." Mia said. She started on her own makeup, choosing to do half grey eyeshadow and half black. I guess her dress was dark grey, but I hadn't seen it yet.

Lissa came back a few minutes later. "Oh good, you finished her hair."

"Yep." I replied, popping the 'p.' "You got Adrian to heal your hand?" I asked.

She grinned. "Yeah. Man, that hurt!" she exclaimed.

I just laughed. "So do you need help with anything?" I asked.

"Can you do my hair?" she asked.

"Sure." I replied.

Then she turned to Viktoria. "Hey Vik, can you do my makeup?"

"Of course, Liss." Viktoria replied. We walked over to Lissa.

"What do you want done?" I asked.

"I want you to straighten my hair and then bump it up a little in the back."

"And for your makeup?" Viktoria asked her.

"For eyeshadow, I was thinking half gold, half blue. Then just some black eyeliner and all of the other basic stuff." Lissa replied.

"Gotcha." Viktoria replied, and the two of us got to work. I straightened her hair to perfection, then grabbed her Dust It and teasing brush off of the table. Dust It was very handy for bumping hair, because it was like a matte and it bumped hair easily. All you had to do was sprinkle some of it at the roots and layer it a little, then take your teasing brush and get to work. Once it was sufficiently bumped, I grabbed a few bobby pins and pinned it in place. Viktoria had already finished with Lissa's makeup, and Mia had put her dress on, so all that was left was for Lissa to put her dress on.

We all turned around so that she could get dressed.

"Okay, I'm decent." she announced. We all turned around.

"Oh my God, Liss! I am in love with that dress!" I gushed. It was a knee-length dark blue dress with thin straps. The material was flowy, and it had two layers because the first was see through. It suited Lissa perfectly!

"Thanks!" Lissa replied. "God, we look hot tonight." she added with a grin.

"I agree with you there." Mia said.

"We have to take pictures!" Viktoria exclaimed. "I'll go get my camera!" she said, slipping her robe on. She dashed out of the room, returning seconds later with her camera.

We took pictures of each of us alone, then of all of us, then of pairs of us together. We had a _lot_ of pictures.

"We better get downstairs." I said.

"Yeah, I guess. The guys are probably waiting." Viktoria agreed.

We all grabbed our heels and our clutch purses and made our way downstairs. The guys were already waiting for us in the living room.

When we walked in, all of their eyes widened. I saw them all stand up, and they began walking toward us. My eyes were glued to Dimitri. He was dressed in a black dress shirt and black slacks. His hair was tied at the nape of his neck, and he was staring intently at me. When he stood in front of me, he wrapped his arms around my waist.

"Roza . . . you look absolutely stunning." he murmured.

"You don't look so bad yourself, cowboy." I replied, grinning.

"Ready to go?" he asked.

I looked to everyone else, and they nodded. "Yep. Let's go."

As we were walking out, Olena stopped us. "Wow girls, you all look gorgeous!" she exclaimed.

"Thanks!" we replied in unison.

"Mama, we'll probably be back in two hours, okay?" Dimitri asked.

"Okay. I'll see you all when you get back!" Olena replied cheerfully.

"Bye." I said, hugging her. The others all said their goodbyes, and we headed to the van. We all sat in our usual spots, and I popped in a CD to listen to on the way to the restaurant. We all sang along and seat danced while laughing at eachother.

We arrived at the restaurant ten minutes later, and boy was it fancy. There were even valets! It was the whole shebang.

We all walked up to the front desk thingy, and Dimitri said something in Russian to the woman behind the counter, and she nodded. She motioned for us to follow her, and she led us to a large table. We all sat down, and she walked away.

"This place is so nice!" I exclaimed, looking around. It was true; there were red silk tablecloths on every table, twinkle lights strung overhead, candles on the tables and comfortable chairs.

Dimitri chuckled. "It's the nicest restaurant in town." he replied.

Just then, our waitress arrived. She was a short dhampir woman who looked to be in her early twenties, with long blonde hair and shocking blue eyes. She pulled her notepad from her apron and looked up. Her eyes widened when she saw Dimitri, which puzzled me. Well, until she spoke.

"Oh my God, is that you Dimitri?" she asked.

Recognition flashed on Dimitri's face. "Oh my God, Anya!" he exclaimed, standing up to hug her. Jealousy coursed through me.

"Hey Anya!" Viktoria called from the other end of the table, grinning.

"Hey Vika!" Anya replied. Dimitri stepped away from her, leaving his hand on her arm.

"I haven't seen you in years! How have you been?" Dimitri asked.

Anya grinned. "I've been good. I've missed you, Dimka. Things got boring when you left." she replied. Then, she added, "Now, are you going to introduce me to your friends?"

"Of course!" Dimitri said. "Anya, this is my fiance Rose Hathaway, her best friend Lissa Dragomir, Christian Ozera, Mia Rinaldi, Eddie Castile and Adrian Ivashkov." As he said our names, he pointed each of us out.

Anya gasped. "Oh wow, you're engaged! Congrats, Dimka." Then she turned to me. "You're a lucky girl, Rose. Don't let him go."

I smiled, but it was forced. I was getting a bad vibe from her. "I definitely won't." I replied. There was an underlying _back-off _tone to my voice, but she seemed completely oblivious to it.

She faced the rest of my friends. "Hello to everyone else! I can't believe that I'm waiting on Princess Dragomir's table!" she exclaimed.

_I don't like her very much. _Lissa said through the bond. I looked at her as if to say, _Yeah, me either._

"Please, don't treat this any differently. I'm just a normal person eating a normal dinner with my friends." Lissa replied sweetly, but through the bond I could tell that she was annoyed.

"Sure." Anya replied. "Now, what would you guys like?"

Luckily, they had normal food here, so I got some steak—medium rare—and caesar salad and water to drink. I didn't pay attention to what the others ordered. I couldn't shake the feeling that there was something weird about Anya.

We chatted about random stuff until our food came twenty minutes later. At this point, I was completely ravenous and would have eaten anything. My steak and salad looked absolutely delicious, and I began eating eagerly. No one even attempted to talk to me while I ate, because they knew that I wouldn't answer. They knew how I got whenever there was food around. The thought made me smile.

I finished my food before anyone else, as usual. "I have to pee." I announced, standing up.

"Thanks for sharing, Rose." Christian said dryly.

"No problem!" I replied cheerfully, grinning. Christian just shook his head and went back to eating. I made my way to the restroom, went pee, then washed my hands in the nice motion sensor sink. The soap smelled really good, like oranges or something along those lines. I applied some of my lemon glaze lip gloss and left the room to go sit back down.

When I sat back down, almost everyone was done their food. Only Lissa, Mia and Christian were still eating.

I grabbed Dimitri's hand under the table. "Hey." I whispered.

A small smile appeared on his lips. "Hey." he whispered back.

"I love you." I said casually.

"I love you too." he replied, scooching closer to me. He wrapped his arm around my shoulder and hugged me to him, pressing a kiss to the side of my head.

Viktoria spoke. "Dimka, can Adrian and I go out to the van? I want to listen to some of Ro-Ro's music."

"Ro-Ro?" he asked. Viktoria and I shrugged. Dimitri sighed and held out the keys to Viktoria, who sat across from him. "Here. We'll probably be out soon."

"Thanks!" Viktoria replied happily. "Come on, Adri." she said, standing up. Adrian stood up and slipped his hand into hers, and they walked out together, pausing to say goodbye to Anya. Ew.

**Viktoria POV**

After saying goodbye to Anya, Adrian and I walked out, giggles escaping our lips. We started running to the van, which proved to be pretty hard considering the heels. Completely surprising me, Adrian picked me up bridal-style and continued running to the van. He was stronger than I'd thought.

He set me down once we were in front of the van. I pressed the button to unlock the doors, and we got in.

Once we were in, he practically pounced on me. I was now laying on the middle seats while Adrian hovered over me, his hands in my hair.

"I've had such a hard time keeping myself away from you. I wanted to take things slow, so I waited to do anything. But I'm leaving tomorrow, and I don't wanna leave with you thinking that I didn't want to kiss you, because believe me, I did. I _do._" he murmured.

My breath caught in my throat. I wanted him to kiss me so bad. I didn't say anything to him; instead, I pulled his face down to mine.

When our lips met, it was like fireworks went off. Electricity sizzled in the air between us, and I couldn't get enough of the feeling. It was like finding a missing piece of myself, and it felt _so _right. I revelled in the way that his hand felt on my hip, like it was meant to be there. His lips were oh, so warm and gentle on mine. In those few moments, I felt wanted, I felt loved, and most of all, I felt safe. Like nothing could happen to me as long as I was with my Adri.

Moments later, the door opened, and Adrian and I sprung apart. We were expecting Dimitri and everyone else. What we weren't expecting was a bunch of Strigoi. I saw Galina among them, and I momentarily stopped breathing.

"Take them." she said before turning and walking away.

It was like time stopped in that instant. They came at us so fast. Adrian curled himself around me, trying to shield me. I tried to shout at him, but I couldn't speak. They grabbed him and whacked him over the head. He slumped, and a Strigoi slung him over his shoulder. Then they grabbed me and did the same.

The last thing I saw before everything went black was the terrified faces of my friends.

**Oh no! How will everyone react to that? What will happen to Adrian and Viktoria? Review and find out! I might not be updating for a while because it's exam time at school and if I fail, my netbook will be taken from me and I won't be able to write. Wish me luck!**


	22. Chapter 23

**A/N: Hello everyone! Here I am with another update for you guys, since you're all awesome! This will be the only update for this week, since exams aren't over until the end of the week -_- I have my Science exam tomorrow, and I'm freaking out trying to memorize how many moons each planet has, stupid stuff about atoms and just a bunch of random unnecessary crap that won't help me in life. Fun, right? Haha but at least I could get this out, and I write in every spare minute that I have! I've already started the next chapter, but I won't have much time to finish it anytime soon.**

**Anyways, I hope that all of you like this chapter! I laughed at some of the responses that I got last chapter . . . people like to freak out XD**

**Disclaimer: Even if I did own Vampire Academy, there's no way that I could have written it as well as Richelle Mead did. So no, Vampire Academy and its characters do not belong to me. Sigh . . . :(**

_Enjoy the chapter :) Sarah_

**CHAPTER **Twenty

**Rose POV**

As we sat and waited for the others to finish their food, I leaned on Dimitri's shoulder, content to just sit with him.

Moments later, I started feeling nauseous. "Oh shit. Dimitri, we have a problem." I whispered.

"What?" he asked, his expression turning worried.

"There are Strigoi somewhere."

Everyone at the table stopped what they were doing when they heard me. I got up, and Dimitri pushed me back down. "No." he said firmly.

"I promise I won't fight. I just need to be there. Please, Dimitri." I pleaded.

Dimitri sighed. "Fine. Christian, Eddie, I need you to come with me." he said. We all stood up and headed towards the door.

When we walked out, I nearly fainted. A Strigoi had an unconscious Adrian slung over his shoulder, and two more were grabbing Viktoria. I saw the terrified look on her face before she too was knocked unconscious. The Strigoi all ran, along with a few more stray Strigoi. They took off, and we all watched in stunned silence.

Seconds later, I collapsed. The grief that I felt in that moment was overpowering, and my body shook with the sobs that ripped through me. I saw Dimitri sink down beside me, and that broke my heart even more. His sister was just taken.

"Chris, we need to get them inside." Eddie said quietly.

I felt someone slip their arms under me, and when he picked me up, I realized that it was Christian. I cried into his shirt, and heard Eddie trying to help Dimitri up.

Christian nudged the door open and carried me in. When we got to the table, I heard Lissa and Mia gasp.

"What happened to them?" Lissa asked, sounding panicky. I was too wrapped up in my own grief to notice her feelings from the bond.

"Adrian and Viktoria were taken." Christian replied solemnly.

"Oh my God!" Mia exclaimed.

"Liss, can you pay so that we can get these two home?" Christian asked.

"Of course." Lissa replied. I heard her and Mia get up and push their chairs in.

"Let's get you in the van, Rose." Christian whispered to me. I could only nod; I was still too distraught to do much.

Together, Eddie, Dimitri, Christian and I went out to the car. I peeked away from Christian's chest to see Dimitri. He looked dead; Eddie had to hold him up so he wouldn't fall.

If this would have been under different circumstances, I would have complimented Eddie and Christian for their strength.

Eddie must have opened the back door, because Christian gently sat me down beside Dimitri, who had already been helped in. I curled up next to him, and he wrapped his arms around me as we cried together. Christian and Eddie sat in front, with Eddie driving. When Lissa and Mia got out, they sat in the very back together. I heard Eddie start the van, and vaguely felt us start moving.

"Why?" I whispered brokenly, another sob violently shaking my body. No one answered me, because I knew they were all thinking the same thing: To get to Dimitri and I. I majorly pissed Galina off last week, and this was how she'd decided to get us back.

Everyone was silent the rest of the way home. When we got back, Christian offered to carry me again, but I just shook my head. Dimitri and I got out and walked, each of us supporting the other. We stumbled up to the door. With a shaky hand, Dimitri pulled his key from his pocket and opened the door.

"Oh Dimka! You're home!" Olena called from the living room. She came running out, a big smile on her face. That smile dropped when she took in our appearances. "What happened?" she asked worriedly.

I ran into her arms. "I'm sorry!" I wailed, fresh tears falling down my face.

She patted my back. "For what, dear?"

I wanted to tell her, but I couldn't find the words. Luckily, Lissa came to the rescue.

"Olena, would you come sit for a moment?" she asked.

"Of course, Lissa. What's going on?" she asked once she was sitting.

Lissa took a deep breath. "Olena, this is very hard for me to tell you, and it's going to be even harder for you to hear. Olena . . . Viktoria, along with Adrian, was taken by Strigoi."

I saw Olena's eyes widen and fill with tears. "No . . . Lissa, please tell me you're lying!" she cried.

Lissa shook her head, her expression apologetic. "I wish that I was. I'm so sorry."

Olena put her hand over her chest and started hyperventilating. Tears rolled down her face non-stop. "Sonya, Karolina!" she gasped out.

Her daughters came running out of the living room, and I walked back over to Dimitri. He hugged me tightly, his body still shaking, along with mine.

"Mama, what's wrong?" Karolina asked.

"Viktoria and Adrian were taken by Strigoi!" she cried, putting her face in her hands.

Sonya didn't even wait for an explanation; she ran up the stairs to her room, tears already falling from her face. Karolina, however, stayed rooted to the spot, frozen in place.

"No . . ." she whispered. She turned and saw Dimitri and I, basically clutching eachother for dear life. "How?" she asked.

"Viktoria asked Dimitri if she and Adrian could go out to the van because she wanted to listen to music and they had both finished eating. Dimitri gave her the keys, and they went out. A few minutes later, Rose felt her Strigoi nausea and we went to investigate. We saw that Adrian was already unconscious in the arms of a Strigoi, and then they hit Viktoria over the head and ran." Christian replied sadly. I was really proud of him tonight. He was really taking charge.

Karolina joined her mother and hugged her tightly, both of them crying. My heart broke for the family.

"Let's go to bed." Dimitri whispered hoarsely. I nodded, and we made our way up the stairs, whispering goodnight as we walked by everyone. I stopped when we were walking by Christian. I pulled him in for a hug.

"Thanks for everything, Chris." I said, hugging him tighter.

"No problem, Rose. I'll always be here for you when you need me." he replied, rubbing my back.

I pulled away and kissed him on the cheek. "You're a good friend." I whispered before taking Dimitri's hand and walking up the stairs. Once we got to his room, we dressed in our pajamas. I just took my dress off and slipped on one of his shirts, which basically acted as a short nightgown. I couldn't be bothered to do anything else.

Dimitri turned the lights out, and we curled up to eachother under the covers.

I looked him in the eyes. "Dimitri . . . do . . . do you think they'll be okay?" I asked quietly.

Dimitri started shaking again. "I don't know. I just don't know." he replied, his voice breaking.

"I'm scared." I whispered.

"Me too, Roza. If anything happens to them . . . I'll never forgive myself. If I hadn't given Vika the keys, they wouldn't be gone." he replied. I could hear the agony in his voice, and I didn't like it.

I stroked his cheek. "Dimitri, you can't blame yourself. It won't do any good, because what's done is done. We will find them, but you can't dwell on _what ifs._"

He took a deep breath. "I know. And hey, when did you get so wise?"

"I've been around you and your grandmother for too long." I replied, snuggling myself closer to him.

"Surely you don't mind being around me! I am your fiance, after all." Dimitri said, sounding offended. I knew he was kidding, though.

"Nah, I don't mind. I love you too much. And don't worry. We'll find them."

"What's with all of this 'we' business? You're not going anywhere."

I was about to protest, but I thought better of it. I remembered how close I came to losing my babies last time, and I wasn't about to go for round two. "You're right." I said, sighing.

"Did I just hear that correctly? You're not going to fight me on this?" he asked, looking shocked.

"No, I'm not going to fight you on this. The babies are too important to risk." I replied, wrapping my arms protectively over my belly.

"Thank you." Dimitri whispered, wrapping his arms tightly around me.

"You're welcome. Goodnight, Dimitri. I love you."

"Goodnight, my Roza. I love you too."

I fell asleep to the sound of Dimitri's heartbeat.

**Adrian POV**

I woke up feeling groggy and disoriented. I couldn't remember what happened, or how I got here. Wherever _here _was. My head hurt.

I looked around the room. It was nice; like, _really _nice. Maybe it was a hotel or something.

But why does my head hurt?

Sighing, I laid back down, and noticed that I wasn't alone.

Viktoria laid beside me, still in her dress from dinner. She was still asleep, but her face was contorted in pain.

Suddenly, it all came back to me. Kissing Viktoria in the van, the Strigoi ambushing us, and then . . . nothing. I rubbed the back of my head and winced; there was a huge bump. _I must have been hit on the head,_ I thought.

I stroked Viktoria's cheek with my hand. What have we gotten ourselves into?

Viktoria twitched, and her eyes fluttered open. "Adrian? Where are we?" she asked, rubbing her head. "Oh God, my head!" she moaned.

"Shh, Viki. I don't know where we are, but we were taken by Strigoi. Remember?" I asked, looking her in the eyes.

Her eyes widened as the pieces clicked in her head. "Oh my God! Adrian, what are we gonna do?"

I closed my eyes and swallowed hard. "I don't know. This isn't exactly my area of expertise." I replied. I pulled her close to me.

"We need to think of something. Maybe we can break the window or something." she suggested, snuggling up to me.

"Viki, I don't think that the Strigoi would be that stupid. The glass is probably reinforced."

She sighed. "Adri, I'm scared."

I kissed her gently on the lips. "Don't be. We can't show fear. And Viktoria, I promise we'll get out of this."

"I wish that I could believe you . . . Adrian, you know that they took us as bait or something. They're trying to get to Rose and Dimitri."

"Son of a bitch." I muttered. "But how does that work? They don't even know where we are. _We _don't even know where we are." I pointed out.

Viktoria shrugged. "Maybe they'll do that dream thing."

Dream thing . . . that gave me an idea. "Viki, I'm going to try and dreamwalk Rose."

"Is it even nighttime? I can't see anything through those tinted windows."

"You can't, but I can. My vision is better. And trust me, it's nighttime." I replied.

"Okay. Well hurry back, I don't want to be alone for too long."

"Don't worry. And if you hear anyone coming in, shake me." I told her. She nodded, and I closed my eyes. I searched for the connection that led me to Rose, and followed it with my mind.

When my eyes opened, I was still in the room. But Rose sat on the bed with her back to me.

"Rose."

She whirled around at the sound of her name. "Adrian! Oh my God, are you okay?" she asked, jumping up off of the bed. She ran at me and tackled me with a hug.

"I'm fine. My head hurts, but I'm fine." I replied, reaching up to gingerly touch the bump on the back of my head.

Rose began crying and sobbing hysterically. I rubbed her back until she calmed down, which took a few minutes. "What about Viktoria?"

"Viki is fine." I replied. "Scared, but fine."

"Do you know where you are?" she asked.

"Here." I replied, gesturing around me.

Rose bit her lip. "This doesn't really help. Can you see anything outside?"

"From what I could see, there's a huge maze surrounding the property. I'm guessing that this place is pretty big, because this room is pretty high up. It's a few floors."

Rose groaned. "That could be anywhere! You couldn't see any city lights or anything?"

I shook my head. "Nothing. This Galina chick obviously owns a lot of land."

"Fuck!" Rose yelled, kicking the bed. "And you guys have no weapons?"

"None."

"Well this is just great. The best I can do is tell Dimitri your description of the place."

"Hey, maybe he knows a big place in the middle of nowhere with a giant maze surrounding it. You never know." I said, trying to joke.

Rose glared at me. "Adrian Ivashkov, this is no time for joking around. You and Viktoria are in danger!" she exclaimed angrily, smacking my arm. "It's time for you to smarten up and take care of yourself _and _Viktoria."

"I know. But I can't help trying to lighten up a bad situation. It's who I am, Rose."

She pulled me in for another hug. "I just want you to be careful. If I ever lost you . . . I don't know what I'd do with myself. You're one of my best friends, Adrian. I just . . . I just can't lose you." she whispered. My shirt started to feel wet, and I realized that she was crying again.

"Don't cry, little dhampir. Viktoria and I will make it out of this. You aren't getting rid of me yet."

"Good. Because my babies need their fun Uncle Adrian."

My eyes started to water. "Rose . . . you can't worry about me so much. You have to be strong. Those babies will have their fun Uncle Adrian."

She sniffled. "You know that Dimitri blames himself for this?" she asked.

I raised an eyebrow. "That's ridiculous! Why?"

"He said that if he hadn't given Tori the keys, then you guys wouldn't have been taken."

"Tell him it's not his fault at all." I said. Rose nodded.

Suddenly, I heard Viktoria calling my name and felt her shaking me. "I have to go. Viki needs me." I told Rose.

"Be careful. I love you. Tell Tori that I said 'Je t'aime.' "

"I will. Bye, Rose." I said before letting go of the connection.

**Rose POV**

I shot up in bed, breathing heavily.

"Roza, what's wrong?" Dimitri asked groggily. It was the middle of the night, after all.

I was about to tell him the news he'd been waiting a day to hear. I grabbed his hands in mine. "Dimitri, Adrian just dreamwalked me."

Everything was silent as the news sunk in. "Is he alright? Is Vika alright?" he asked, his excitement barely concealed.

"They're fine. Their heads hurt and Viktoria is a little bit scared, but they're okay." I replied, squeezing his hands.

"Thank God," he breathed, hugging me tight. "Does Adrian know where they are?"

I pulled away, grimacing. "Not exactly. From what he gathered, they're in an extremely large house in the middle of nowhere with a giant maze surrounding it."

"It's a start, I guess." Dimitri muttered, his shoulders slumping.

I tilted his chin up. "We'll find them, Dimitri. Oh, and Adrian said not to blame yourself. It wasn't your fault." I told him.

Dimitri shook his head. "No matter how many times I hear it, it won't change anything. I'll probably always blame myself." he said sadly.

"Dimitri . . . at least we know they're okay." I pointed out, trying to cheer him up.

"For now. What if Galina decides to hurt them?" he asked.

"You can't consider that right now. Just think positively, Dimitri."

"I'll try, but no guarantees."

"Dimitri, you have to. Please, for me. For our babies. You can't be so glum all the time. Viktoria and Adrian will come home safe and sound."

He took a deep breath. "Okay. You're right. I need to stop focusing on the negatives. I need to think positive. For you and our babies." He said the last part in a coo, rubbing my little bump.

"Thank you. And, I could always call Abe tomorrow. Maybe he can get us some answers, maybe even hire people to help get Tori and Adrian back." I suggested.

Dimitri grinned. "That's not a bad idea, Rose. How soon to you think he can be here?"

"For me, he'll be here as soon as possible. I am his only daughter, after all." I replied, grinning back. "Let's go back to sleep. We'll tell everyone else about the dreamwalk tomorrow, and I'll call Abe."

"Okay. Goodnight, my beautiful Roza."

"Goodnight, my beautiful comrade." I replied, giggling.

Dimitri sighed, but said nothing. I snuggled back into his arms, our hands resting on my belly. I fell into a peaceful sleep after that.

**Later That Morning**

I was woken up to my annoyingly familiar morning sickness.

Groaning, I ripped the blankets off and untangled myself from Dimitri's arms and ran to the bathroom. Dimitri was right behind me, since I accidentally woke him up in my haste to get to the bathroom. He held my hair and rubbed my back as I basically puked my guts out.

After I brushed my teeth, Dimitri and I headed down to make some breakfast. Olena has been a wreck, and she hasn't been up to cooking. Mia, Dimitri and Christian took turns cooking now, and it was Dimitri's turn to make breakfast. None of us were sure how long the arrangement would last. We weren't even sure how much longer we'd be here. It all depended on when we got Adrian and Viktoria back.

Dimitri started making eggs, bacon and french toast. I'd been slowly learning to cook, so Dimitri trusted me with the bacon today. It was probably because it wasn't easily burned, but whatever. It made me feel useful, and I'd need to learn how to cook anyway. I'd be cooking for five, soon.

Lissa and Mia came down the stairs, still in their pajamas.

"The food smells good, guys." Mia commented, yawning.

"Thanks." Dimitri replied, smiling at the small girl.

"Any news from Adrian yet?" Lissa asked.

I nodded. "He dreamwalked me last night. They're fine."

"That's good. Any idea where they are?" Mia asked.

"In the middle of nowhere. I'm gonna see if I can get Abe here to look into it, because knowing him, he'll be able to find it. I have a few details." I replied. "So can one of you two watch the bacon while I call him?"

"I'll do it." Lissa volunteered, taking my spot at the stove beside Dimitri. "I guess we're a team now, eh Dimitri?" she asked, elbowing his side playfully.

"As long as you don't burn anything, I'm fine with that." Dimitri replied, grinning at her.

Laughing, I ran upstairs to grab my phone. It was nice to see Dimitri so comfortable around my friends.

Once I had my phone, I pressed Abe's speed dial number. It rang a few times before he answered in his gruff voice.

"Hello, Kiz!"

"Hey, Dad."

"Why aren't you home? You were supposed to be home yesterday!" he said, sounding confused.

"Well, that's why I'm calling. We can't leave yet."

"Why?"

"Adrian and Viktoria were taken by the Strigoi that are after Dimitri and I."

I heard Abe's sharp intake of breath. "You're kidding, right?"

"I wish that I was, Dad. Things have been hard around here, especially for Olena. She barely comes out of her room anymore. Karolina has to take her her food and make sure she eats."

"Oh Kizim . . . well how can I help?"

"Well, I was hoping that you and Mom could come to Baia and maybe you could help us. Adrian dreamwalked me last night, so I have a basic description of the place."

I bit my lip and waited for his response. "Kiz, I'd do anything for you. Your mother and I will be there tomorrow, okay?"

"Yes! Thank you _so _much, Dad. And when you get here, I have some news for you and Mom."

Abe chuckled. "Okay, Rose. I'll see you tomorrow. Be careful, okay?"

"I will. Goodbye, Dad. Tell Mom I love her."

"Will do. Goodbye."

Smiling, I pressed the end button. I ran back downstairs, only to find Lissa and Dimitri dancing around the kitchen as Mia laughed at them.

"Wow. What did I miss?" I asked, a grin on my face. They stopped dancing immediately, both blushing.

"Nothing, we were just fooling around." Lissa replied, waving her hand dismissively.

"What did your father say?" Dimitri asked. I could tell that he was trying to change the subject.

"He said that he and Mom will be in Baia tomorrow."

Everyone looked shocked. "That fast?" Mia asked.

I shrugged. "What can I say? Although he's a tough guy, he'd do anything for me." I replied, sitting beside her at the table.

"Well, the food will be ready in a few minutes, so can you two go get the boys up?" Dimitri asked.

"Sure." Mia and I replied in unison, standing up and pushing our chairs in. We ran up the stairs and headed to Paul's room. We didn't bother knocking, we just walked right in.

"Get up." I said loudly, walking over to Christian's blow up mattress.

He groaned. "Go away."

"Sparky, get up. Breakfast is almost ready." I growled. I ripped the blanket off of him, and he groaned again.

"Fine, I'm up! Jeez, Rose." he muttered, sitting up.

"Thank you!" I replied sweetly, walking out. Mia was right behind me, having already woken Eddie up. We walked back down to the kitchen and notified Lissa and Dimitri that the boys would be right down.

Karolina came walking down the stairs with Paul and Zoya. "Good morning, everyone." she said sweetly. She looked tired.

"Karolina, you look exhausted. Do you want me to feed Zoya for you?" I asked.

"That would be great, Rose. There's a bottle in the fridge. I have to take food to Mama anyway." she replied, smiling. I grabbed a bottle from the fridge, heated it in the microwave and tested it on my wrist. It was fine, so Karolina handed Zoya to me and I sat at the table to feed her.

I watched as Karolina grabbed two plates of food, one for herself and one for Olena. She headed out to Olena's room, and Lissa got some food for Paul.

Eddie and Christian came down just as Paul was heading out to the dining room.

"Eddie! Chris! You guys can sit with me!" Paul said excitedly.

"Sure, buddy." Eddie replied, grabbing a plate. He began loading it up with food, and then Christian did the same. Once they had their food, they headed out to the dining room. Mia got up and grabbed some food as well, then followed them out. I continued feeding Zoya. She was so cute! It made me eager for the day that I would hold my babies.

"You're so cute, Zoya. I hope your little cousins will be as cute as you are." I cooed, poking her little nose. She stopped drinking her milk to giggle at me, then started drinking again. "Little piggy." I said, rocking her gently.

Lissa went out to join the others, and Dimitri set a plate of food down in front of me. "Thanks." I said. He leaned down to peck me on the lips.

"You're welcome." he replied, sitting beside me.

Sonya came down the stairs. "Good morning, Sonya." I greeted her.

"Good morning Rose, Dimka. Where's Karolina?" she asked.

"She's eating with Mama." Dimitri replied.

"I guess I'll go eat with them." she announced, grabbing some food and leaving the kitchen to go to her mother's room.

I held Zoya with one arm so that I could eat as I fed her.

"So Abe will be here tomorrow?" Dimitri asked for confirmation.

"Yeah. And I told him that we had something to tell him and Mom. He probably thinks I'm talking about our engagement." I replied, snorting.

Dimitri shuddered. "I can almost feel the punch that I'm sure I'm going to get from your mom."

"I will _not _allow her to punch you. I'll punch her." I said angrily.

"Rose, you can't punch your mother. Don't worry." Dimitri said, rubbing my arm.

I took a deep, calming breath. "I would, you know. I love her, but I won't tolerate her punching you."

"I know. Now, eat your breakfast. We have a long day filled with absolutely nothing ahead of us." Dimitri said with a grin.

I grinned back. "Sounds fun." I replied.

**Viktoria POV**

While Adrian was dreamwalking Rose, I heard someone opening the door. I started shaking him. "Adrian!" I whisper-yelled. It took a few more shakes before his eyes opened, and it was just in time because the door to the room opened. Galina walked in, and I repressed a shudder.

"Hello, Viktoria. It's been so long since we've talked." she said in a sickly-sweet voice.

I didn't answer her. I sat there, my chin stuck out defiantly.

Galina's expression hardened. "Not speaking now? You were such a talkative child. What happened?" she asked.

"What happened is that I don't want to talk to you." I replied curtly.

Her eyes narrowed, and Adrian squeezed my hand. "You've got an attitude, and I don't like it. I might have to just shut you up." she snarled.

"Oooh, I'm so scared. What are you gonna do to me, Galina?"

Adrian shot me a warning look that seemed to say _shut up!_ Galina saw this, and smiled at him.

"Are you worried about her?" Galina asked him.

"Viktoria is capable of taking care of herself." Adrian replied, scowling at Galina.

"That doesn't answer my question. Are you worried about her?" Galina reiterated.

Adrian sighed. "I always worry about her."

"Because you love her." It wasn't a question, it was a statement.

He inhaled sharply. "Yes. Because I love her." he said, squeezing my hand.

"I love you too." I said quietly.

"You people make me sick." Galina spat.

"I could say the same about you." I snarled. She would not ruin this moment for me.

Apparently, she had other plans. She snapped her fingers, and the Strigoi behind her grabbed and restrained Adrian.

"Adrian!" I shrieked.

Galina pounced at me and slammed my head on the headboard of the bed. I saw stars for a minute, and saw her open her mouth. She had me pinned against the headboard, then she sunk her teeth into my neck.

"Adrian." I whimpered. It was painful, but only for a few seconds. It became the best thing I'd ever felt in my life. A moan escaped my lips at the feel of it, and my eyes slid closed.

I heard Adrian's agonized shout. "Viktoria!" At the sound of it, my eyes opened. I saw Adrian struggling against the Strigoi that had him pinned, but he couldn't break free. I was too far gone in the endorphins to even consider _wanting_ to get away.

A moment later, Galina detached herself from my neck. My head lolled forward, because I didn't have the energy to hold it up.

"Come on, Marlen. Leave them." Galina ordered. I heard the door click as they left.

As I was about to completely slump forward, Adrian caught me. "Easy." he whispered."Let's get you laying down."

He helped me lay down, and he propped my head up with pillows. "I'll go get a cloth to wipe your neck off."

"Why don't you lick it?" I asked. My head was all fogged up, and I couldn't think straight.

"I can't do that to you, Viki. You're already messed up enough." he replied, smoothing my hair back.

"Don't you need blood?"

"I do, but I can't take yours. I could never do that to you." he said, laying his hand on the side of my neck. I felt hot and then cold. He moved his hand to my head, and the same thing happened. Then I realized that he was healing me, because I was thinking straighter.

"Adri, you can't use so much magic. You'll wear yourself our faster. Please, drink a little. You're going to need it." I pleaded with him, begging him to understand. I didn't want him to be weak. He already had circles under his eyes.

Indecision flashed in his eyes. "Viki, you've already lost so much . . ." he said, but I knew he was close to caving.

I touched my finger to the side of my neck, getting some blood on it. I reached up to rub it on his lip. His tongue darted out to lick it off, and his eyes closed. I put more blood on my finger, and he opened his mouth this time. He sucked the blood off, and I guided his face to my neck. I tilted my head to the side, and he started sucking the blood off of my neck.

Suddenly, he stopped. "Are you sure?" he breathed against my neck, giving me goosebumps. I felt the tip of one of his fangs against my neck.

"Yes." I whispered.

Without another word, he sunk his teeth into my neck. I gasped at the sudden pain, but soon I was moaning. Although the endorphins weren't as strong as a Strigoi bite, they were so much better. Better because I was helping the one I love survive. Better because I wasn't forced into it. Better because the one drinking from me loved me.

He pulled away all too soon. I was about to protest, but he kissed my neck tenderly, then healed it. He then moved to kiss my lips passionately, effectively taking my breath away. My arms went around his neck, and my leg wrapped around his waist. He flipped us so that I laid on top of him and tangled his hands in my hair.

I pulled away briefly. "I love you." I whispered.

"I love you too." he replied, flipping us back over. He re-attached his lips to mine, and I was in heaven. He began trailing kisses down my jaw, and eventually my neck. When he got to my neck, he sucked gently on the most sensitive spot.

"Adrian . . ." I moaned.

Slowly, he made his way back up to my lips. He kissed me gently, then laid beside me, hugging me to him. He kissed my forehead. "Sleep." he murmured.

"Okay." I replied quietly, snuggling up to him as much as I could. We slipped under the blanket and slept in each other's arms for the first time.

**Rose POV**

**The Next Morning**

My parents would be arriving this morning. They called again yesterday to tell me that they'd be here at 10 am my time, and it was 8:50 am now.

I wasn't nauseous yet, but that meant little. It would come, and I wasn't looking forward to it.

I slipped out of bed and gathered stuff for a shower. I made sure not to wake Dimitri up. I'd get him up after my shower.

I took a quick shower and dressed in a white strapless summerdress. I hung my nazar on my neck, then brushed my hair out.

As I was about to start drying my hair, the nausea hit. I ran to the toilet and threw up the contents of my stomach. After that was done, I brushed my teeth and dried my hair. It took a few minutes, but I completely dried it. I then french braided my bangs and pinned them, applied a bit of makeup, and left the bathroom.

I went to Dimitri's room to wake him up and dump my stuff.

"Dimitri, get up. It's 9:20. We have forty minutes before my parents get here."

His eyes fluttered open. "Good morning to you too, Roza." he said, a sleepy grin on his face.

I rolled my eyes. "Just get in the shower. I'll be waiting downstairs." I replied, turning and walking out the door. I walked down the stairs to the kitchen, where Mia and Lissa were cooking breakfast.

"Good morning, Rose." Lissa greeted me, waving with her spatula.

"Good morning, guys." I said, laughing.

"You look nice." Mia commented.

"Thanks. Dimitri and I are going out to breakfast with my parents, so I wanted to look nice." I replied.

"Are you excited?" Lissa asked.

"Yeah, I've missed them. It's been almost a month since I've seen them."

We chatted idly as I waited for Dimitri to come down. He ended up coming down twenty minutes later, his face cleanly shaved and his hair tied back. He wore a black polo shirt and light jeans.

"Hey sexy." I greeted him.

"Hey beautiful." he replied.

Mia and Lissa made gagging noises, and I flipped them off. Dimitri sat next to me and we all talked for a few minutes. We sent Dimitri up to wake Eddie and Christian up, because breakfast was ready for them. Karolina, Paul and Zoya came down.

"Rose, can you feed Zoya again? I have to take Mama her food." she said.

"Of course." I replied, reaching for the baby. Karolina handed her to me and grabbed food for herself and her mother. She left, and I turned to Mia. "Can you heat a bottle for me?" I asked.

"Sure, Rose." she replied, grabbing one from the fridge. She heated and tested it, then handed it to me. I sat down, cradling Zoya. I made funny faces at her, and she laughed and clapped her hands.

"Here you go, baby." I said, starting to feed her. She gurgled happily and drank her milk.

"Rose, you're going to be such a great mom." Lissa said, grinning at me.

I smiled. "Thanks, Liss. I really hope I will be. Because really, it's going to be this," I gestured to Zoya, "times three. It'll be tough, but I think that between Dimitri and I, we'll make it work."

"And you have us!" Lissa and Mia said together in singsong voices.

I laughed. "Yeah, my peanuts will spend a lot of time with Aunt Lissa and Aunt Mia."

"I can't believe we're going to be aunts!" Lissa squealed.

"If this was a few months ago, I wouldn't even be here." Mia pointed out. "We all used to be so petty. We've changed so much, and I couldn't be happier. You guys are the best friends I could have ever asked for."

"Aww!" Lissa and I squealed in unison. "You too!"

"I'd hug you, but I don't wanna crush Zoya." I said, grinning.

The guys came down the stairs. "Took you long enough." I muttered.

"Christian felt like being difficult. Again." Dimitri replied, giving Christian a pointed look.

Christian raised his arms in surrender. "Hey, I'm not a morning person."

Lissa and Mia started piling food on plates. Eddie and Christian grabbed some, then went and sat down. Lissa and Mia followed, and Dimitri, Zoya and I were left in the kitchen.

I looked at the clock. 9:55. "My parents are gonna—" I was cut off my the doorbell ringing. "Never mind." I said, getting up. I walked out to open the front door, revealing my mom and dad.

"Mom! Dad! I'm so happy to see you! Dimitri, take Zoya!" I said, handing him his niece. Once he took her, I basically tackled my parents.

"We're happy to see you too, Kiz." Abe said, hugging me.

"How have you been?" Mom asked, pulling away. She wasn't one for hugs.

"I've been great! You don't even know the half of it, guys." I said truthfully. "Dimitri, I'll take Zoya back now."

Dimitri handed her back to me, and I cradled her gently. "It's nice to see you Abe, Janine." Dimitri said, shaking their hands. I saw my mom give him the stink eye, which made me laugh.

"Oh, by the way . . ." I trailed off, holding my left hand out to my parents.

Abe grinned, and Mom scowled. "Remember what I said, Dimitri." Abe said, his voice threatening.

"Abe, I honestly don't think that's something a person could forget." Dimitri replied. "Listen, why don't the two of you come in for a few minutes before we go to breakfast?" he asked, motioning for them to come in.

"Of course." Abe replied, taking Mom's hand and walking in. We led them to the living room and sat down.

"Can I hold her?" Mom asked, gesturing to Zoya.

"Sure." I handed Zoya over to my mom, who began rocking her and cooing to her.

"Who's baby is this?" she asked.

"Zoya is my sister Karolina's baby." Dimitri replied.

I sent a text to Dimitri.

**Should I go get the ultrasound pic?**

When Dimitri got the text, he paled a little.

**I suppose that now would be a good time.**

"I'll be right back." I announced, standing up. Everyone nodded, and I ran upstairs to Dimitri's room. I grabbed the picture of my peanuts off of the nightstand and left the room. I put the picture in my pocket as I walked down the stairs and sent Lissa a worried look as I passed the dining room. She nodded in encouragement.

I sat down beside Dimitri. He clutched my hand tightly in his. "So . . . there's something else that Dimitri and I want to tell you guys." I said.

Mom and Abe both raised an eyebrow. "Is that so?" Mom asked. She handed Zoya to me, and I handed her to Dimitri. I figured that Mom wouldn't hurt him if he was holding a baby.

"Yes. We'd like to tell you two that you're going to be grandparents." I said. I closed my eyes tightly, not wanting to see the explosion.

I waited a few seconds, but nothing happened. I opened one eye experimentally, and saw my parents with their mouths wide open.

"Are you guys gonna say something?" I asked, looking back and forth between them.

"Kiz . . . are you serious?" Abe asked, his eyes nearly popping out of his head.

"Yes, I'm serious. And before either of you ask, I didn't cheat on Dimitri." I replied, rolling my eyes.

"But . . . how, then?" Mom asked.

"We have no idea. But the babies are mine." Dimitri said confidently.

"_Babies?_" my parents said in unison.

I pulled the ultrasound picture out of my pocket and handed it to them.

"TRIPLETS!" they exclaimed in unison.

"Triplets." Dimitri and I confirmed.

Mom's eyes started watering. "I'm gonna be a grandmother." she whispered. Abe pulled her to him and kissed her head.

"So wait, you're not gonna freak out at us?" I asked incredulously.

Abe chuckled. "How can we freak out when you're having three miracle babies?"

"Have you thought of names?" Mom asked, her eyes still misty.

"We have three for each gender. The boy names are Aleksandr Mason Belikov, Jayce Adrik Belikov and Maksim Ivan Belikov." Dimitri replied.

"And the girl names are Annika Viktoria Belikova, Skylar Vasilisa Belikova and Isabelle Nicole Belikova." I added with a grin.

"Kizim, I love all of them." Abe said, coming over to hug me. "I'm happy for the two of you." he told us.

"Dad, you're gonna make me cry!" I exclaimed, wiping my eyes. He kissed my forehead and sat back down with my mother.

"You two will be great parents. Just don't make the same mistakes we did." Mom said, clutching Abe's hand.

"We won't." Dimitri assured her.

My stomach growled loudly, making everyone laugh. "We're hungry." I said, rubbing my tummy.

"How far along are you?" Abe asked.

"Four weeks." Dimitri and I replied in unison. We all stood up.

"We'll be back in a bit, guys." I said, walking into the dining room to say goodbye while Dimitri took Zoya to Karolina.

"Okay. See ya later, alligator!" Lissa replied, grinning.

"In a while, crocodile." I said, laughing.

"You guys are such nerds." Eddie commented.

"Hey, nerds are awesome!" I exclaimed, acting offended.

"Come on, Roza. We're leaving now." Dimitri said, coming up behind me. I waved goodbye to everyone and followed Dimitri out the door.

We got into Abe's extremely expensive looking car and drove off. We drove to a cute looking diner not far from Dimitri's house.

We talked about random things as we ate. I was genuinely happy to see my parents again, and I was ecstatic that they were happy about the babies.

I knew that when we got back to Dimitri's, it would be time to discuss Adrian and Viktoria.

Adrian hadn't dreamwalked me last night, which scared me. Terrifying thoughts swirled in my head. I was hoping he'd visit me tonight so that I'd know if he was okay.

We drove back in comfortable silence. Once we got there, we headed straight to the living room to talk.

"Rose, I need you to tell me everything that Adrian told you." Abe said once we were sitting.

I took a deep breath. "He told me that he could tell that the place was huge. He said it was definitely a few floors, and there's a huge maze surrounding it. He can't see any city lights in the distance, but it could be because the windows are heavily tinted." I said the whole thing in one breath.

"Well, I'll send helicopters out to look around. We'll look around the entire area, even around Omsk and Novosibirsk. We'll look around every major city in Siberia." Abe replied.

"Really? Oh Dad, thank you so much!" I squealed.

"I'll have them sent immediately. Is there somewhere I can go to speak privately?" he asked.

"Here. I'll take you to my room." Dimitri volunteered, getting up. Abe got up as well, and followed him up the stairs.

"So Mom, are you really happy for me?" I asked.

"Of course! I can't wait to be a grandmother. Although thirty-nine is still too young to be a grandmother, I'm happy." she replied.

"Thank you. You have no idea how much I worried about what you would say, Mom."

"I know exactly how much you worried. I was the same way when I found out that I was pregnant with you. Mum wasn't happy for me at all. After all, I was only a year older than you are now, and I was a great guardian back then. But I was still happy about you. Nothing could dampen my spirits. Rose, you have no idea how much I really love you. It killed me to leave you at the academy."

By the look in her eyes, I knew that she was telling the truth. But one thing didn't make sense to me. "Mom, it wasn't sending me to the academy that made me resent you. It was the fact that you never visited me. I went years thinking that my own mother didn't even love me, all because you didn't visit."

Mom blew out the breath she'd been holding. "Rose, I was scared. I didn't know how you'd react to seeing me, so I took the cowardly way out and only visited once every few years. And then you hated me, and I hated myself for doing that to you. It made me so sick to see the anger in your eyes whenever I came around."

I frowned. "Well, it's good to know things from your point of view. I just want to put the past behind me." I said truthfully, reaching out to grab her hand. She squeezed my hand tightly, and I knew that we'd be okay.

Dimitri walked back into the room. "Abe will be down in a few minutes." he informed us, sitting back down beside me. I let go of my mother's hand and snuggled up to him.

We sat in awkward silence until Abe came back down five minutes later. "As we speak, helicopters are being prepared to leave. We'll find them." he said.

"You're the best dad ever. Thank you, Dad." I said sincerely.

"You have no idea how much this means to us." Dimitri added, rubbing my arms.

Abe waved his hand dismissively. "It was nothing." he replied modestly. He turned to Mom. "Well Janine, we must be getting back to the house. I'll call and let you know if I get any information," he said, directing the last part at me. I nodded, and Dimitri and I walked my parents out.

We sat back down on the couch. I rubbed my temples tenderly; I was getting a headache.

"I think I'm gonna take a nap. I can feel a major headache coming on." I told Dimitri.

He smoothed my hair back. "Okay. Do you want me to hold on to your phone in case Abe calls?"

"Sure." I replied, pulling my phone from my boob crack. Dimitri raised an eyebrow at me. "When you're wearing a dress, your boobs are your only pocket." I explained, handing him my phone.

"Roza, you teach me something new every day." he said, chuckling.

"Glad to be of service." I replied, stretching out on the couch. Dimitri stood up and pulled a blanket over me, then leaned down to kiss my head.

"I'm going for a run. If you need me, I'll have my phone and yours, so call either one."

I nodded. "See ya when I wake up, Dimi. I love you." I murmured.

He leaned down to peck me on the lips. "I love you too." he replied. My eyes slid closed, and I heard Dimitri run up the stairs. I fell asleep fairly quickly, slipping into the blackness of sleep.

**Dimitri POV**

I ran upstairs and got changed into some shorts and a wife-beater. I stuffed my phone and Rose's into my pockets, then ran downstairs. I saw Rose laying on the couch, and heard her snoring softly. I started laughing quietly; she had a talent for falling asleep. I walked over to kiss her on the forehead, and saw her smile in her sleep. Then I turned around and walked out the door.

As I ran, I thought about everything that had happened since Rose and I came to Russia. We were attacked. We found out about Rose's pregnancy. We got engaged. Viktoria and Adrian were taken. So many things in such a short period of time. Some good, some bad.

I still blamed myself for Viktoria and Adrian being taken. How could I not? If I hadn't given her the keys, they would have been safe in the restaurant with us.

I couldn't help but think that none of the bad things would have happened if Rose wouldn't have saved me in the caves. I'd be gone, but they'd be safe. Maybe if I surrendered myself to Galina . . .

I immediately shook the though out of my head. Rose needed me. Our babies needed me. And I would do anything and everything in my power to keep them safe.

I was going to make Galina pay. If she did anything to my sister or Adrian . . . I don't know what I'd do. I hoped to God that they were protecting and taking care of eachother.

The ringing of Rose's phone jolted me out of my thoughts. I stopped running and pulled it out of my pocket. The caller ID said Dad, so it was Abe.

"Hello?" I answered.

"Dimitri?" Abe questioned.

"Rose is asleep, so she gave me her phone." I explained.

"I see. Well, I think we might have something."

I felt my eyes widen. "Are you serious?" I asked.

"Very. One helicopter spotted a large estate outside of Novosibirsk. It has a maze surrounding it and everything. I think it might be the place."

"Can you stop by later so that we can come up with a plan?"

"Of course. Janine and I will be there at three."

"Thank you, Abe."

"It was nothing, Dimitri. I'll see you and Rose later."

"Okay."

Abe hung up, and I had to stop myself from jumping for joy. I looked at the time on Rose's phone. 11:30. We had three and a half hours until Abe and Janine would be at the house. I decided that I'd run until twelve, then go back and wake Rose up.

Grinning, I tucked her phone back in my pocket and started running again.

**Rose POV**

I didn't know how long I was asleep before Adrian pulled me into a dream. We were on the beach.

"Adrian?" I called.

He popped out of the water. "What are you doing asleep at this time?"

"Nap. How did you know to look for me?"

"Viki is sleeping, and I was bored, so I let my mind wander. I guess I found you." he replied, grinning.

"Well I'm glad to see you. I have good news." I said, hugging him.

"And what is said good news?" he asked.

"Can you get Tori here? I'd rather tell both of you." I replied.

Adrian grimaced, but nodded. My brow furrowed in confusion. He looked like he wasn't happy about it. Which made me wonder what was wrong with Viktoria.

Seconds later, Viktoria materialized next to Adrian, and I knew why he wasn't happy.

Viktoria was pale as a ghost. She had bruises covering her neck, and what looked like fresh bitemarks. My hand flew to cover my mouth, stifling a gasp.

"What happened to her?" I asked, my eyes watering.

"Galina." he mouthed. I looked at him closely. He showed no signs of exhaustion or fatigue, like he should have if he hadn't had blood in a few days. Which meant that . . .

This time, I couldn't hold back the gasp. "Adrian, how could you?" I demanded angrily.

Adrian cringed. "Viktoria made me. I didn't want to, I swear!"

I turned to Viktoria. "Is this true?" I asked. She nodded mutely, and scuttled closer to Adrian. "Why?"

"I don't want him to be weak. He needs his strength to use spirit so he can visit you to get updates, and he usually heals me too. He needs me." Viktoria replied evenly.

"So, let me get this straight. You're dealing with Strigoi and Moroi bites at the same time?"

Viktoria nodded again. "Galina seems to think that it's fun to see me all drugged up, and it gets Adrian upset. It's her way of torturing us, and it pisses me off. So please tell me that you got Adrian to bring me here because you have something good to tell us, because I can't take this for much longer. I'm in a constant state of weakness, and it's not good." she said, frowning.

I grinned. "Well, because I love you guys and everyone is falling apart without you, I got Dad here in Russia. I gave him your," I pointed to Adrian, "description of what you could see, so he sent helicopters all around the big cities in Siberia. Wherever you are, the helicopters will find you."

Wide grins appeared on both of their faces. "Thank God for Abe!" Adrian exclaimed.

"Have the helicopters found anything yet?" Viktoria asked.

I shrugged. "I have no idea. Abe might have called Dimitri, but I'm asleep so I really don't know. That's why I need you to visit me tonight. If I have any information, I'll let you know then." I directed the last part at Adrian.

"Will do." Adrian replied.

I stepped forward to hug both of them. "I miss you guys so much." I whispered sadly. I pulled away and spoke to Viktoria. "You should see your mother, Tori. She barely comes out of her room anymore. Karolina and Sonya have to take her food to her, just so that she'll eat. It's pretty bad." I said truthfully.

"Mama . . ." Viktoria whispered. Tears welled in her eyes, and Adrian kissed her softly.

The dream became blurry. "You're waking up." Adrian murmured. I pulled them in for one last hug, then the dream disappeared and I woke up.

**So how was it? Were you all happy with it, or was it utter crap? Let me know what you guys thought of it in a review!**

**Until the next update! That's all, folks! Hahahahahahahahahaha I crack myself up :P**

**Anyways, make me a happy girl and review :) Please? For me? 285th, 290th, 295th and 300th reviewers get a preview of the next chapter! And, well, if your review makes me really happy, I might give you a preview too :D**


	23. Chapter 24

**A/N: Sorry about the wait! I wanted to get a little bit ahead with my writing, so I haven't posted anything. I'm writing chapter 23 at the moment, so my new thing that I'm gonna do is I'm gonna wait until the chapter in advance is done before I post the one that needs to be posted. If that makes any sense at all :P**

**Warning: You guys are probably actually going to hate me after this chapter, so I apologize in advance :S**

**Disclaimer: Same as always. It isn't going to change.**

**CHAPTER **Twenty-One

**Rose POV**

I woke up to Dimitri shaking me gently and murmuring my name. I blinked a few times, then spoke. "Hey comrade." I said softly, a yawn escaping my lips.

"Hello Roza. Did you have a good nap?" he asked, sitting down on the edge of the couch.

"Mmm, yeah. Adrian and Tori visited me." I replied, sitting up. I rubbed my eyes and yawned again. "Did Dad call?" I asked.

"He did. They think they've got something."

I couldn't hold back my squeal of happiness. "Where?"

"Outside of Novosibirsk. There's a huge estate with a maze surrounding it."

"Do you think it's the place?"

Dimitri nodded. "I think it could be. Abe and Janine are coming here at three to discuss a plan." He handed me back my phone. I checked the time, and it said 12:20.

"Okay, that works. Should we tell the others?"

"In a minute. You said that both of them visited you . . . are they okay?" he asked cautiously.

I wasn't able to stop the grimace that made its was on to my face. "Well . . ."

Dimitri took a deep breath. "Tell me. I can handle it."

"Adrian is fine, but Viktoria . . . she's pale as a ghost, Dimitri. Galina has been drinking from her, and Galina also compelled Adrian to drink from her." I'd decided not to mention that Viktoria made Adrian drink from her, because Adrian would get in shit with Dimitri. So I decided to just say that he'd been compelled.

Dimitri stood up and started pacing. He was also muttering angrily in rapid Russian. I could pick out the words for kill and bitch, but the rest was beyond me. I stood up and laid a hand on his chest so that he'd stop pacing and calm down.

"Dimitri, she'll be fine. Adrian is taking care of her to the best of his abilities. He's doing his best." I murmured, grabbing his hands in mine. "Adrian is devastated that he had to drink from her, because he never wanted to hurt her in any way. You know that, right?"

He took a deep breath. "I know. Which makes me hate Galina so much more, because I know that no one can resist the compulsion of a Strigoi. She did that to them, and she's going to pay for it." he said quietly.

I made a mental note to myself to tell Adrian that I told Dimitri he'd been compelled, and to tell him to pass that along to Viktoria.

"I know. You'll get her, Dimitri. I know you will. I took out Nathan, so she's all yours."

"Good. I need to finish her so that she can't get you or the babies. I won't let her do that. The minute she tries, my stake will be in her heart."

I leaned my head on his chest. "Just be careful when you go, okay? I don't know what I'd do if I lost you. I can't raise three babies alone." I whispered tearfully.

He wrapped his arms around me. "Shh, Roza. You aren't going to lose me. I promise I'll come home to you." he said softly in my ear.

"You better." I said, sniffling. "We should probably go and tell everyone else. You handle your family, I'll handle my friends."

"Sure." he replied, letting go of me. I turned to go up the stairs, and he headed to his mother's room, where his family was gathered.

From Lissa's head, I saw that everyone was hanging out in the guest room, so that's where I went. I didn't bother knocking, I just walked right in.

Everyone was chattering to eachother, but they stopped when I walked in. "I have important news concerning Adrian and Viktoria." I announced.

"We're all ears, Rose." Christian replied.

"Well, Dad sent helicopters out to scan the areas around big cities in Siberia, and we think that we may have found them. Adrian described what he could see to me in a dream, and I passed that on to Abe. One helicopter found a large estate with a giant maze surrounding it outside of Novosibirsk. We think that's where they've been taken. My parents will be here at three to discuss a plan. You guys are welcome to join in on the discussion." I explained.

"We'll be there." Eddie said, looking to Christian, who nodded.

"Don't think that we're about to be left out of the loop!" Lissa exclaimed.

"We're coming down too!" Mia added.

I nodded. "I'll come get you when my parents get here, okay?"

Everyone nodded, and I turned and left the room.

When I got downstairs, Dimitri was already waiting for me.

"My friends are all coming down when my parents get here." I informed him.

"Good. My family will probably come to listen as well." he replied.

"So what do you wanna do while we wait?" I asked.

"I can think of a few things." he replied, waggling his eyebrows.

I was about to say no, but the idea intrigued me. We could fool around a little . . .

Dimitri's eyes widened. "What?" I asked.

He grabbed a mirror and held it out to me. "Look at your face."

What a weirdo. Whatever. I held the mirror up to look at my face, and saw what he was talking about.

I had successfully raised one eyebrow without even thinking. "Oh. My. God. I did it!" I squealed. I set the mirror down and grabbed his hand. "Let's go and celebrate." I purred.

We ran at full speed up to Dimitri's bedroom, where we stayed cooped up until 2:30.

I headed straight to the bathroom, because I had to fix my hair. It looked like something died on my head. I took the pin out, brushed my hair, then re-did the french braid. Once I was presentable, I headed downstairs to eat a snack. Dimitri was sitting in the living room watching TV, so I grabbed some chips and went to sit with him.

He slung his arm around my neck and I snuggled up to him. I opened the bag of chips, and held it out to him. We snacked in silence as we waited for my parents to arrive.

The doorbell rang at three o'clock on the dot. Dimitri answered while I ran upstairs to get my friends. Again, I didn't bother knocking on the door.

"My parents are here." I said. Everyone got up and followed me down to the living room, where my parents sat with Dimitri.

"Hello everyone." Abe greeted them. Some waved, some said hi. I sat beside Dimitri, while my friends occupied the other couch. Dimitri's family silently filed in, some sitting in chairs while others stood.

"We need to come up with a plan to get them back." Dimitri said bluntly.

"I think that we should go in the daytime. That way, the Strigoi can't escape and we can get them all." Christian suggested, looking back and forth from Abe to Dimitri.

"I agree with Chris. It would be a lot easier to get all of them." Eddie added.

"But the question is, what day?" Abe asked.

"As soon as possible." I replied. "I think that you guys should go tomorrow. Viktoria is in bad shape, and I don't know how much longer she can take this. I saw her firsthand, so I know how badly she needs to get out of there."

Olena put her face in her hands. "My baby." she whispered. Karolina hugged her tightly and murmured to her in Russian.

"I agree with Rose. We need them safe with us as soon as possible." Dimitri said.

"Well, I'll see what I can do." Abe conceded, standing up. "Can I use your room again?" he asked Dimitri.

"Sure." Dimitri replied. With that, Abe headed upstairs, phone in hand.

Mom got up and walked over to Olena. "Olena, I know how you feel. When Rose was gone for two years and I had no idea where she was, I was sick with worry. I promise that we will get your daughter back tomorrow. I will give you my word that I will get her myself." she said, reaching out to take the older woman's hand.

Olena sniffled. "Thank you, Janine. You have no idea how much that means to me."

Mom nodded to her, then sat back down. We talked amongst ourselves as we waited for my dad to come back down.

He finally came down a few minutes later, a satisfied look on his face.

"So?" I asked.

Abe grinned. "I've enlisted the help of some dhampirs that I've worked with before, so I know how good they are. Everyone will be meeting here at six am tomorrow morning, and we'll all set out for the estate shortly after. Got it?"

"Loud and clear, Abe." Christian replied. Eddie and Dimitri nodded in agreement.

"Abe, Janine, would the two of you like to stay for supper?" Olena asked. "It's the least I can do for all of your help."

"Olena, we'd love to. Thank you." Abe replied.

After that, everyone dispersed to do their own thing. I headed to the piano room, because I hadn't played in a few days.

I sat at the bench, trying to remember how to play "When You're Gone" by Avril Lavigne. I let my fingers drift over the keys experimentally, and it took a few tries before I got it right. I began singing along as I played, completely unaware of my audience.

_I always needed time on my own  
I never thought I'd  
Need you there when I cry  
And the days feel like years when I'm alone  
And the bed where you lie  
Is made up on your side  
When you walk away  
I count the steps that you take  
Do you see how much  
I need you right now?_

_When you're gone  
The pieces of my heart are missin' you  
When you're gone  
The face I came to know is missin' too  
When you're gone  
All the words I need to hear  
To always get me through the day  
And make it okay  
I miss you_

_I've never felt this way before  
Everything that I do  
Reminds me of you  
And the clothes you left  
They lie on my floor_

_And they smell just like you  
I love the things that you do  
When you walk away  
I count the steps that you take  
Do you see how much _

_I need you right now?_

_When you're gone  
The pieces of my heart are missin' you  
When you're gone  
The face I came to know is missin' too  
When you're gone  
All the words I need to hear  
To always get me through the day  
And make it okay  
I miss you_

_We were made for eachother  
Out here forever  
I know we were, yeah  
And all I ever wanted was for you to know  
Everything I do I give my heart and soul  
I can hardly breathe  
I need to feel you here with me, yeah_

_When you're gone  
The pieces of my heart are missin' you  
When you're gone  
The face I came to know is missin' too  
When you're gone  
All the words I need to hear  
Will always get me through the day  
And make it okay  
I miss you_

"I didn't know you still played." Mom said from behind me, making me jump. I also noticed my father there.

"Yeah, I picked it up again." I replied.

"Kizim, you're so talented." Dad said warmly, resting a hand on my shoulder.

"You should hear Dimitri play. It's amazing." I murmured, remembering the way his fingers moved across the keys.

"It doesn't surprise me. You two are some of the most talented people I know." Mom replied, grinning at me.

I stood up and pushed the bench in. "I'm going outside." I announced.

"You're just in time for the show, then." Abe said, grinning at me.

"What show?" I asked.

"Christian and I are going to practice with our fire magic."

I grinned. "Sweet!" I exclaimed. I practically ran out to the backyard, where I sat in a lawn chair. Lissa, Mia, Christian, Eddie and my parents came out a few minutes later, and Lissa and Mia sat beside me. Eddie and Mom stood off to the side, and Abe and Christian stood about ten feet apart, facing eachother.

Christian smirked. "Let's do this."

Abe raised an eyebrow. "Sure, kid. Let's see how good you are with that magic of yours."

Suddenly, Paul came running out. "I wanna see the fire!" he shouted.

I patted my knee. "Come sit, little man."

He smiled and ran over to me, sitting on my lap.

Christian's hands exploded into fire, and a look of intense focus appeared on his face. "Bring it on." he said.

Abe gritted his teeth, and a fireball appeared between his hands. He threw it back and forth, before chucking it at Christian. Christian stepped out of the way and threw two fireballs at Abe, who ducked down and sent a giant fireball flying towards Christian.

A giant wall of fire exploded in the air in front of Christian, absorbing Abe's fireball.

"Whoa!" Paul exclaimed. We were all completely mesmerized by the beauty of the fire.

The wall of fire dissipated, and Christian began rapidly shooting fireballs from his hands. Abe dodged them to the best of his ability, but one skimmed the side of his face, burning him. This spurred him on, and he shot multiple flames towards Christian. Christian was fast though, and dodged them all.

Christian and Abe were both panting heavily by this point. The side of Abe's face looked like it hurt, and I knew that Lissa wanted to heal it.

"I think that's enough, guys." I said, moving Paul off of my lap and standing up. I pulled Christian over to a chair to sit down, while Lissa walked over to my dad.

"Lissa, it's just a little burn. I'll be fine." Abe tried to convince her, but she wasn't having it.

"Ibrahim Mazur, sit your butt down so that I can heal you. I'm not taking no for an answer." she said firmly, pointing at the chair. I had to hand it to her; she was very brave to talk to my father like that.

Abe's eyes widened, and he complied. I started choking on air because I started laughing. _The _Abe Mazur, scary-ass mobster, was scared of sweet little Princess Lissa. Abe glared at me, but I kept laughing anyway.

Lissa pushed him down in a lawn chair and touched her hand to the side of his face. The burn mark disappeared in a matter of seconds. I felt a bit of darkness stirring in Lissa's head, so I dutifully pulled it into myself. I shuddered gently, but didn't feel crazy. Lissa noticed this.

"Rose, are you okay?" she asked. "Your eyes are looking kinda dark."

"Yeah, I'm great. No need to worry about me, Liss."

"You took my darkness, didn't you?" she asked angrily.

"Well . . ."

"Rosemarie Hathaway, you have got to stop doing that!" she yelled. She seemed a little too angry, so I checked her mind for any more darkness, and found a tiny bit. Trying to be discreet, I pulled it away again.

"Sorry. I won't do it." I lied. I had to take care of her, and that was one way of doing it.

"Good." she replied, satisfied that I chose to listen to her. This was one of those times that I was grateful she couldn't get into my head.

We stayed outside a bit longer and watched Eddie and Mom spar. He didn't stand a chance, but at least he learned a few new tricks. He took a pretty hard hit to the leg, and he was going to have a wicked bruise tomorrow.

We soon ate supper, and then my parents left. I was sad to see them go, because it was the second-last time I'd see them before they went to rescue Adrian and Viktoria. I was so worried about everyone that I even threw up a few times. Dimitri tried to soothe me, but I was too wired up.

We hung around with everyone for a little while before we all decided that it was a good time to go to bed. The sky had darkened considerably, and it was about 7:30. That gave everyone about nine and a half hours of sleep, so they'd be nice and rested for the next day.

Dimitri and I got changed into our pajamas and curled up under the covers.

"I'm so worried, Dimitri. What if someone doesn't come back? What if _you_ don't come back?" I was starting to get hysterical, so Dimitri sat up and pulled me on to his lap. He murmured soft words of comfort in my ear, and I sagged against him.

"Roza, I promise you that I _will_ come back. And I don't break my promises. I need you to be strong for me, Roza. I won't be able to concentrate tomorrow if I know that you're so worked up about me, so I need you to take a deep breath and calm down."

I took a few deep breaths, and gradually felt myself calming down. "I'm just sick with worry, Dimitri. I don't know what I would do if any of you got hurt. I'll do my best not to worry, but I can't make any guarantees."

"I know, honey. But I promise to come home to you, and I promise to make sure that everyone else does too." he assured me.

I shook my head. "Dimitri, you're not Superman. You can't do everything, be everywhere at once. I just have to trust that everyone knows what they're doing." I replied. "Are you scared?" I asked.

"A little. My biggest fear is that something will happen to Vika or Adrian, though. I'm confident with myself, so don't worry."

I breathed a sigh of relief. I rested my hand on my tummy and smiled. "We'll miss you while you're gone." I murmured. He laid me down and pulled my shirt up, then leaned down to smother my belly with kisses, making me giggle.

"Daddy is coming home to you, okay? I promise." he said to my stomach. I started full on laughing at this, because it was adorable. He pressed one last kiss to my belly. "Daddy loves you." he murmured, rubbing my tummy gently.

"Any love for your fiance?" I asked, giving him puppy dog eyes.

"I have plenty of love for my fiance." he replied, pulling my shirt back down. He made his way up to look me right in the eyes. "I love you." he murmured, leaning his head on his hand.

"I guess I love you too." I said, grinning. He kissed me gently, pouring all of his love into it. The kiss reassured me that he'd never leave.

I fell asleep with his arms wrapped around my waist and my head buried in his chest.

**Adrian POV**

After visiting Rose, I left Viktoria sleeping. She'd been so weak for three days now, and I was really worried about her. She was barely eating—yes, they actually gave us food—and it was really scaring me.

"Oh Viki . . . I hope they find us soon." I whispered, brushing her hair out of her face with my fingers. She stirred slightly, but didn't wake up. I gently laid my hand on the side of her neck to heal Galina's bitemarks away. She wouldn't have let me if she would have been awake. She didn't want me to waste my energy, but I couldn't stand to see her like that.

I don't know how long I laid there and just looked at her before she woke up. I looked out the window and saw that the sky had darkened, and it would be night soon. As soon as it got dark, I would start trying to reach Rose.

"Adrian?" she said groggily, rubbing her eyes.

"Yes, love?"

"Do you think they found anything yet?" she asked hopefully.

I sighed. "I don't know, Viki. I hope they did." I replied.

"Me too. I'm tired of being drugged from Galina's bites. Yours aren't bad, but hers are like, the ultimate high. I want it, Adrian. I shouldn't, but I do. And it's scaring me."

"Vik, that's natural. It's a drug, and a highly addictive one at that. Rose fed Lissa for two years, and she's fine today. You'll be fine, I promise."

"I hope so. I don't want to become a junkie, Adri."

"You won't." I assured her, stroking her cheek. "By the way, I love you." I added.

She grinned at me. "You know, I'll never get tired of hearing that. And, I love you too."

Then, the door opened and our food was brought to us. I guess we were having pizza tonight. The human servant left as quickly as she came, and we started eating. I ate both of my pieces, but Viktoria only ate one.

"Viki, you're worrying me." I murmured, resting my hand on her leg.

"I just can't eat anymore, Adri. My appetite is gone."

Sighing, we laid down. I wrapped my arms around her, and we sat and talked for a few hours. She was soon snoring, and I looked out the window. It was finally nighttime. I closed my eyes and searched for Rose, but found nothing. She wasn't asleep yet. I stared at the ceiling and waited ten minutes before trying again. Nothing.

"Come on, Rose." I whispered. I waited another ten minutes before I tried again, and this time, I was there.

"Been waiting?" Rose asked from behind me. We were in Dimitri's room at his house.

"Maybe." I replied, grinning.

"I honestly just fell asleep. Kinda creepy that you were waiting for me, Adrian." she said playfully.

"You're in a good mood. Does that mean you have good news for me?" I asked.

"Yep. You guys are coming home tomorrow. One of Abe's helicopters found the estate. It's right outside of Novosibirsk."

I breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank God! Rose, you're the best." I said, hugging her tightly.

"Don't I know it." she replied, sighing theatrically. "So be ready, okay? They're leaving early in the morning, so they'll be there before noon." she informed me.

"Gotcha."

"Has Galina been back?" she asked.

"Luckily, she hasn't. She would have usually come to check on us by now, but she didn't. I'm really worried about Viktoria, Rose. She isn't eating properly."

Rose bit her lip. "That isn't good. She'll be fine once she gets home, though. Her appetite will come back, and she'll recover. Okay? So don't worry too much about her, because worrying doesn't do any good."

"I know, I just can't help it. I love her, and I can't stand seeing her like this."

"I know. I'm worried about Dimitri going tomorrow, so I know what it's like to worry about someone you love. It's like being punched repeatedly in the gut, isn't it?" she asked. I nodded. "Just focus on the fact that you guys are getting out of there tomorrow."

"I can do that. I'd better go so that I can pass this along to Viktoria."

"Wait! I told Dimitri that Galina compelled you to drink from Viktoria, so go with that, okay? And tell Viktoria to go with it too."

I laughed. "Thanks. Now I don't have to worry about Dimitri killing me. You think of everything, don't you?"

"Yeah." she said with a grin. "I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"

"Okay, Rose. Bye."

"Bye." she replied, and I let go of my connection to her so that I could wake Viktoria up and pass all of the new information along.

**Rose POV**

We all woke up the next morning at 5:00. I went down and put a pot of coffee on for everyone, while Lissa and Mia cooked breakfast. The guys all took their showers, and then came down for coffee and breakfast. The breakfast table was silent, because no one could find anything to say. There was a very real possibility that someone wouldn't come back, and though no one wanted to think about it, we all were.

When 6:00 rolled around, I was a nervous wreck. I did my best to hide it from Dimitri, but I knew he saw it.

The doorbell rang, and I sprang up to puke. I couldn't take it anymore; my nerves were making me sick. Dimitri followed me and held my hair for me as I violently threw up. My whole body heaved.

I brushed my teeth. "Thanks for holding my hair." I said quietly.

Dimitri stroked my face. "Roza, we'll be fine." he murmured.

"I know, I just can't help it, you know? I'm probably being irrational."

He bent down to kiss me gently. "Don't worry about us. We can handle ourselves."

I took a deep breath. "Let's go downstairs." I said. Dimitri nodded, and we headed down the stairs where everyone was gathered.

I gave everyone giant hugs. "All of you better come back." I warned them, looking each of them in the eye.

"Rosie, do you doubt us?" Christian asked. I was too scared for them to even threaten him for calling me Rosie.

"No, I just worry about you guys." I replied.

"Kizim, we're going to be fine." Abe said, hugging me tight.

"No need to get yourself all worked up." Mom added.

"We're all badass, Rose." Eddie added, grinning at me.

"Yeah, I know. You guys better get going, then." I said, swallowing hard.

We walked them to the door. Dimitri tilted my head up and kissed me passionately, taking my breath away. "See ya in a few hours, Rose." he said confidently, grinning.

"See ya, cowboy." I replied. We waited for Lissa and Mia to say their goodbyes to Christian and Eddie, and then we watched the rows of black SUVs drive away. Abe must have gotten _a lot _of dhampirs to help out.

Tears rolled down my face before I could stop them. Lissa and Mia aww'ed at me, then pulled me in for a group hug.

"I'm scared." I whispered.

They pulled me into the living room and the three of us collapsed on the couch. Lissa got up and put "The Blind Side" on again. We curled up under a blanket and fell asleep for a few hours.

**Dimitri POV**

We arrived at the estate a few hours later. We knew that there was absolutely no way we'd be navigating through the maze, so we did the only thing we could: Drove right through them. The SUVs could handle it, because they were top of the line. We went charging through like an army of death, and I observed the estate from the front seat. I scanned the windows to look for anyone, but they were heavily tinted.

My eyes stopped on one window. Two forms were pressed right up against the window, making their silhouettes visible. They began waving, and I instantly knew that it was Adrian and Viktoria.

"Abe, they're in that room." I said, pointing to the window. From behind the wheel, he looked where I was pointing and saw them.

"Okay. You, Christian, Eddie and I will go after them. The others can hold off the Strigoi." he replied. He spoke into his walkie-talkie, giving the other SUVs their instructions.

It took a few more minutes, but we were finally through. I pulled my stake from its holster and threw it back and forth in my hands. "Ready?" I asked.

"Ready." the other three replied in unison. Abe sent the orders through the walkie-talkie for everyone to charge, and a swarm of men and women in black attire started running towards the house. They kicked the door in, and we exited the car. Everyone started flooding in, and I took one last look at the window to make sure I knew where to go.

I motioned for the others to follow me, and we crept in. Dhampirs were locked in battle with Strigoi all around, and already I saw bodies—Strigoi _and_ dhampir. Shaking my head, I pressed on. I led us all up a giant staircase, then turned left. We got to an elevator and stepped in, and I pressed the button for the top floor. We waited as the elevator went up, then the doors opened.

The hallway was deserted, but we crept along quietly just in case. I kept going left, because the room they're in is on the very end of the left side.

Suddenly, a Strigoi popped out from behind a door. Abe reacted quickly, lighting it on fire. I slid my stake into its heart, and it sunk to the ground.

"Thanks." I said.

"No problem." Abe replied, grinning.

We kept going until we got to the end of the giant hallway. A Strigoi stood guard outside the door, and snarled when he saw us. I was about to tackle him, but then I saw that the door had a keypad. Figures.

"The door has a keypad." I growled. "Christian, Eddie, keep him busy." I said. Eddie and Christian sprung into action.

"Good thing I deal with this stuff all the time." Abe said smugly. "Watch and learn, Dimitri."

We walked over the door, and Abe started fiddling around with the keypad. Moments later, the light flashed green, and Abe opened the door.

"How..?" I mumbled. I directed my eyes inside, and found another door. Great. "I'll hold this door open, you . . . work your magic, Abe."

Abe nodded, and went to work on the other door.

"Christian, Eddie, go ahead and kill him." I said.

"Edster, stand back and watch how it's done. The _fun_ way." Christian said, stepping forward. Suddenly, the Strigoi's entire body exploded into flames, and all that could be heard was his agonized cries. It went on until it was nothing but a burnt heap on the floor.

Eddie high-fived Christian. "Dude, that was _awesome!_" Eddie exclaimed.

"Yeah, it was." Christian panted.

"Come on!" Abe explained. We all headed into the room, and found a frantic Adrian hovering over my unconscious sister.

**Rose POV**

The three of us woke up a few hours later to find that Sonya was the only other person home. Karolina, Olena, Paul and Zoya had gone to the park to take their minds off of everything, but Sonya stayed home because she wasn't feeling the best.

"I made lunch." Sonya informed us when we stumbled sleepily into the kitchen.

"Thank God!" I exclaimed. "I'm starved."

Sonya grinned, and rested a hand on her huge belly. "I don't feel like eating. I've had pains in my stomach randomly." she said, grimacing.

"Why don't you go lay down?" Lissa asked.

"I think I will." Sonya replied. She waddled out of the kitchen. She must have been halfway down the hallway when it happened. "Uh-oh." she mumbled.

"What uh-oh?" I asked worriedly.

"My water just broke."

**Adrian POV**

Viktoria and I saw when the SUVs came charging in. We waved from our window, hoping someone would see us.

When everyone started charging in, Viktoria wobbled woozily.

"Viki, are you okay?" I asked worriedly.

"I feel . . ." But she didn't get to finish her sentence before she passed out. I caught her before she passed out, and laid her down gently. That bastard Marlen decided to fill in for Galina and feed off of Viktoria, since Galina was nowhere to be seen. I couldn't stop him, because he compelled me to stay away. He took way more than Galina ever did, and it left Viktoria confused and extremely weak. She could barely stand on her own. And now, she'd passed out. Great. Just what I needed.

Minutes later, I heard fighting in the hallway. I prayed that they'd get past the keypads on the doors soon. I grabbed Viktoria's wrist and felt for a pulse. It was very weak, and I started freaking out.

About five minutes later, Abe, Dimitri, Eddie and Christian came charging in.

"What happened?" Dimitri asked. All colour drained from his face when he saw Viktoria laying on the floor.

"That bastard Marlen took too much blood from her. She passed out ten minutes ago. Her pulse is really weak, and I'm scared!" I cried.

Dimitri put his hand on my shoulder. "It's okay. Calm down. We need to get out of here. Now."

I nodded, and slid my arms under Viktoria. I lifted her easily into my arms, and we started running. We got into an elevator and rode to the bottom floor, where a few fights were still going on. Abe waved Janine over. "Everybody run!" he yelled. He lit a few Strigoi on fire to distract him, and Christian followed suit. All of the dhampirs began retreating, and we ran out the front door into the sunlight. "Janine, take Eddie and Christian in an SUV with you. I'll take Dimitri, Adrian and Viktoria." Abe said.

"Okay." she replied. Then she turned to me. "Thank God you guys are okay. Rose was worried sick." she said before walking away, Christian and Eddie following.

"We're glad to see you, man." Christian told me as they walked away.

"We're glad you're safe." Eddie added. We headed to separate SUVs, and I laid Viktoria in the back and sat beside her, laying her head on my lap. I gave her a small dose of spirit healing to make sure she would be okay, and we started the long drive back to Baia.

**Rose POV**

"You're kidding, right?" I asked.

"Nuh-uh. This baby is coming." Sonya replied.

I ran out of the kitchen, fluttering my hands uselessly. "Do you have a bag packed?"

"In my room."

"Liss, can you go grab it? And Mia, go start the car!" I said, handing Mia the keys while Lissa ran up the stairs.

I grabbed Sonya's arm. "Your mom and Karolina didn't take a phone, did they?" I asked. Sonya shook her head. "I'll write a note." I said, grabbing a pen and a piece of paper. I scribbled a quick note telling them to come to the hospital as soon as they saw this, because Sonya was in labor.

Lissa returned with Sonya's bag, and we headed out to the car. Mia was sitting in the passenger seat, and Lissa helped Sonya into the back seat, then sat beside her. I got behind the wheel and sped off. I knew how to get to the hospital, because Dimitri had shown me in case I needed to know.

We arrived at the hospital a few minutes later. We sat Sonya in a wheelchair while Lissa told the doctor that Sonya was having a baby. Mia held on to Sonya's bag, and a nurse began pushing Sonya's wheelchair towards a room. We all followed, and waited outside as Sonya changed into a hospital gown.

We went and sat with her for about and hour and a half before Olena, Karolina and the children got there.

"Mama!" Sonya exclaimed, clearly relieved to see her mother. She hadn't been dealing well with the contractions, and having her mother there clearly comforted her.

Olena ran over to hug her daughter. "Oh baby, I can't believe it's time!" she squealed.

"How is she?" Karolina whispered in my ear.

"She's doing pretty good, but the contractions are hitting her pretty hard." I replied quietly. I pulled out my phone and looked at my it. I had a missed text from Dimitri.

**Honey, we're coming home!**

An excited squeal escaped my lips. "They're coming home!" I exclaimed loudly. I texted Dimitri back.

**Is everyone okay? Are you okay?**

Lissa and Mia hugged me tightly and we all squealed together.

**Well . . . can you call me?**

My eyes widened, and I felt my breathing quicken. "I'll be right back." I said, leaving the room. I went out the front doors and sat down on a nearby bench. I pressed Dimitri's speed dial number and waited as it rang.

"Hello?" Dimitri said. Relief flooded into me at the sound of his voice, but then I remembered that there was something wrong.

"Hey, cowboy." I replied softly. "How is everyone?"

"Safe."

"Then what's the problem?" I asked. Then a hornet started attacking me, and I swatted it away. That made the hornet angry, so it stung me. "Ouch! Fuck! Dammit!" I swore, rubbing the spot tenderly.

"What's wrong?" Dimitri asked.

"Stupid goddamn hornet stung me!" I said furiously.

"Hornet? Roza, where are you?"

"Outside the hospital."

"Why? Is everything okay?"

"Sonya went into labor. Lissa, Mia and I brought her here almost two hours ago." I replied. "But anyways, will you tell me what's wrong?" I asked.

"Here. I'll let someone else." he replied.

A familiar voice came on the phone. "Hey, little dhampir." I could almost imagine the grin that would be on his face.

"Adrian!" I shouted. "Oh my God, I'm so happy you're okay!"

"Yeah . . . but Viki isn't. She passed out from blood loss, and she still hasn't woken up. I'm worried about her."

"Shit!" I exclaimed. "Have you tried healing her?"

"Of course. I've been giving her small doses."

"What are you gonna do?"

"Wait until she wakes up, I guess."

"I guess that's all you can do, Adrian."

I heard him sigh. "Well, I'll give the phone back to Dimitri now. I'll see you later, Rose."

"See ya." I replied.

"So Sonya's in labor?" Dimitri asked.

"Yep. You're going to have another niece pretty soon." I replied, smiling to myself. I was still rubbing my arm absentmindedly where the hornet stung me. "When are you gonna be back?" I asked.

I heard Dimitri repeat my question to Abe, but I didn't hear Abe's answer. "In about three hours. I'll come straight to the hospital."

"Good to know. God, it freaked the three of us out when her water broke. She honestly walked out to go lay down and stopped right in the middle of the hall."

Dimitri chuckled. "At least you got her to the hospital."

"Yeah, I know. I'd better go; the girls are probably wondering where I am." I said, sighing. "Text me, okay?"

"Will do, Roza."

"Bye, Dimi."

"Paka, lubov."

I smiled as I pressed the end button. I made my way back to Sonya's room, where the women stared expectantly at me.

"Well . . . everyone is fine, but Viktoria _may _have passed out . . ." I mumbled, not meeting the eyes of the Belikovas.

"Let me guess . . . blood loss?" Karolina asked levelly.

I nodded.

Olena closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "Will she be alright?"

I nodded again. "Adrian is taking good care of her. He's been giving her small doses of spirit to heal her."

"We'll have to thank him." Sonya panted. _Must be another contraction, _I thought.

We stayed together and talked for a few hours before Dimitri texted me.

**I'm outside the hospital. Come meet me? I have a surprise.**

Grinning, I texted back.

**One order of Rose coming right up, comrade. I'll be right out.**

"Dimitri's outside. I'll be right back, okay?" I asked, looking around. Everyone nodded, so I left.

As soon as I got outside, I spotted the SUV. Dimitri opened the door, and we ran towards eachother. I jumped into his arms and he hugged me tight.

"I missed you." he whispered in my ear.

"I missed you more. Now where's my surprise?" I asked.

Dimitri laughed. "Look behind you." he replied, setting me down on the ground.

Slowly, I turned around to face a grinning Adrian and a tired yet happy looking Viktoria.

I hurled myself at them. "OH MY GOD!" I yelled.

Viktoria covered her ears. "I think I'm deaf." she muttered, flashing a grin at me.

"Are you guys coming in?" I asked.

"I am." Viktoria replied.

"Abe's taking me to the feeders in town." Adrian said.

"Then I guess I'll see you again later, Adrian." I murmured, hugging him tight.

"See ya, little dhampir." he said, pulling away and jogging to the SUV. I waved to Abe, who sat inside, and he waved back. Adrian got in, and they drove away.

"Let's go in." Dimitri said, grabbing my hand. I slung my other arm around Viktoria's shoulder, and we walked in together. I led them to Sonya's room, then paused outside.

I turned to Viktoria. "You wait out here. We can surprise them."

Viktoria nodded, and Dimitri and I walked in. Dimitri headed right over to Sonya and held her hand.

I cleared my throat. "Dimitri and I brought a visitor." I announced. "Come on in!" I called loudly.

When Viktoria walked in, she was immediately tackled by Olena, Karolina and Paul.

"Aunt Vika!" Paul yelled.

Everyone fussed over Viktoria for a while before everything settled down. The doctor came in regularly to check on Sonya and see how dilated she was.

About two hours later, my stomach started rumbling. In our haste to get Sonya to the hospital, we hadn't eaten anything. I could tell that Lissa and Mia were hungry as well. "Listen, we're going to go to the cafeteria. We haven't eaten all day." I said.

"Hurry back," Dimitri murmured. I gave him a quick peck on the cheek and motioned for Mia and Lissa to follow me. We practically ran to the food court.

I got Lissa to order for me again, telling her to get me anything edible. She just laughed, and I left to find us some seats.

Lissa and Mia came over with the food a few minutes later. I devoured my food hungrily, finishing it quickly. I played with my phone as I waited for the others to finish.

"So Rose," Lissa said. "Can you drive us back to the house when we're done? We wanna see the guys."

"Sure. I'll just have to run back to Sonya's room and grab the keys." I replied. "I'll do that now, actually." I added, standing up. I pushed my chair in and jogged back to Sonya's room.

"Where are the others?" Dimitri asked.

"Still at the food court. I came back to get the car keys." I replied.

"Where are you going?" Viktoria asked, confusion clear on her face.

"Liss and Mia wanna go back to the house. They miss Christian and Eddie." I said, grabbing the keys. "I'll be back soon."

"Okay." everyone replied in unison. I left the room and walked back to the food court.

When I got there, Lissa and Mia were just finishing their food. When they saw me, they stood up to throw away their garbage and followed me to the car.

"I call shotgun!" Lissa shouted childishly.

"Aww, no fair!" Mia replied, crossing her arms over her chest.

"You guys are worse than five-year-olds," I muttered, getting into the car. Lissa settled in beside me, and Mia sat in the back seat.

"We know." they chimed together, giggling.

Our childish banter lasted all the way back to the house, where I dropped them off. I waited until they got inside to drive away, but I waved to Christian and Eddie first. They waved back, grins on their faces.

I put my CD in and blasted the music the whole way back to the hospital. I got a little to carried away with the music, and didn't notice that one of the cars didn't stop at their red light. I kept driving, and a car slammed right into my side of the car before I could slam on the brakes.

***smiles nervously * Yeah, you all hate me. I get it. But bear with me!**

**Next chapter will probably be up soon, so no worries!**

**I know you guys are probably angry about the end of this chapter, so tell me whatever is on your mind, good **_**or **_**bad. All I want is your true opinion.**

**I hope you all don't hate me too much!**

**REVIEW :)**


	24. Chapter 25

**A/N: WOW! I got a lot of reviews for the last chapter, all of you begging me not to kill anyone XD Oh, ye of little faith! Haha anyways, this chapter is long...ish? Meh. You guys don't care, just as long as I post something. Am I right? lol I hope you all enjoy this chapter and I hope I didn't disappoint!**

**Disclaimer: Come on! How many times do I have to say it? I DON'T OWN VA OR THE CHARACTERS. They belong to Richelle Mead (who I now follow on Twitter XD)**

**P.S. If you want to follow me on Twitter, my username is iloveDimitri081. I'll post info on things like when I'm going to update to there, so that's where you wanna go if you want info.**

_Enjoy! Sarah :)_

**CHAPTER **Twenty-Two

**Dimitri POV**

I was in the middle of a conversation with Viktoria when a Moroi doctor came in the room. She had chin-length jet black hair and sea grey eyes, but was shorter than most Moroi. She wasn't the one who'd been coming in to check on Sonya, which puzzled me.

She turned to me. "Are you Dimitri Belikov?" she asked calmly.

My brow furrowed. "Yes." I replied.

"Could I speak with you in the hallway for a moment?"

I stood up from the chair I'd been sitting in. "Of course."

I followed her out to the hallway, wondering what she could possibly want to speak with me about.

She turned and faced me, her expression grave and her grey eyes sad. "Mr. Belikov, I'm Dr. Malina Zeklos. Do you know a Rose Hathaway?"

At the mention of her name, I froze. "What happened to her?" I asked, my heart clenching with worry.

"Dimitri, I'm so sorry. I'm afraid that Rose was in a car accident."

Time stopped. My world stopped. _Everything _stopped. My breath was coming in shallow pants, and darkness danced at the edges of my vision.

"Doctor, what's wrong?" Viktoria asked. Where did she come from?

"I've come to tell Dimitri that Rose Hathaway has been in a car accident." the doctor replied.

I heard Viktoria gasp, and felt her arms wrap around me. "Oh God . . . Rose . . . Dimitri, what about the babies?" she asked frantically.

I saw Dr. Zeklos' stunned expression. "Rose is pregnant!"

"Four weeks pregnant with triplets." I replied robotically, my voice sounding hollow. Viktoria's arms around me were the only things keeping me upright.

"Mr. Belikov, I promise you that we will do everything that we can to make sure that Rose and your babies are okay."

"Can we see her?" Viktoria asked, her voice breaking.

The doctor shook her head sadly. "I'm afraid not. She's being prepped for surgery."

_Surgery_. The word echoed through my mind. I had to ask something. "How bad is it?"

"She took a serious blow to the side of her head, her left arm and leg are broken, and she has a punctured lung. I'm so sorry."

Viktoria buried her face in my side, while I made no effort to conceal my tears.

A lump rose in my throat. "Please take care of her. I don't know what I'll do if anything happens to her." I said in a strangled voice.

"I promise you that I'll do the best I can." the doctor replied, resting a hand on my arm. "Would you like to wait in the waiting area?" she asked. I nodded.

"Vika, tell the others what happened. I'll call Lissa. If you want, you can come sit with me." I said quietly to Viktoria, who nodded and went back in the room. I followed the doctor to the OR waiting room and sat in a chair. The doctor disappeared through one of the doors, and I pulled my phone from my pocket with a shaking hand.

I didn't have Lissa's number, so I just called the house.

After a few rings, they picked up. "Belikov residence." Eddie said.

"Eddie, it's Dimitri. Could I please talk to Lissa?" I asked, struggling to keep my voice even.

"Sure, man." Eddie replied. I heard him call for Lissa, and she spoke seconds later.

"Dimitri?" she answered.

"Yes, it's me. You have to get back to the hospital." I said.

"Why? Dimitri, what happened?" she asked.

"Rose was in a car accident." I replied, unable to stop my voice from shaking.

The line was silent for a moment before I heard Lissa begin sobbing uncontrollably.

"Dimitri, what's wrong? Why is Lissa crying?" Christian asked. He must have taken the phone from Lissa.

"Christian, Rose was hit by a car. She took a bad hit to the head, broke her left arm and leg and she . . . she has a punctured lung." I sobbed, unable to say it without crying.

"Oh my God . . . we'll be there soon. I'll call Abe to pick us up, okay?" Christian said quietly.

"Thank you. I'm at the OR waiting room, okay?"

"Okay. We'll be there in a few minutes."

I pressed the end button on my phone and buried my face in my hands.

**Abe POV**

Janine and I had been enjoying a relaxing dinner at my house when my phone rang. The caller ID told me that it was Christian.

"I'll be right back." I said to Janine before ducking out of the room and answering my phone. "Hello?"

"Hi, Abe. Can you and Janine come pick all of us up and drive us to the hospital?" Christian asked. There was something about his tone of voice that worried me.

"What's wrong?"

"Um . . . well, I guess Rose was in a car accident."he said quickly.

My eyes widened. "We'll be right there." I replied before hanging up. "Janine!" I called.

She came running out. "What?" she asked.

"Grab the car keys. We have to go pick Rose's friends up and go to the hospital."

Janine's expression turned puzzled. "What happened?"

I took a deep breath. "Rose was in a car accident. Before you ask, I don't have the details."

"Oh God . . . okay, let's go. Separate cars again?"

I nodded. "One car won't fit all of us. Take the Mustang." I replied.

Janine nodded, and grabbed the keys to my dark blue 2010 Mustang. I grabbed the keys to my new canary yellow 2011 Camaro. We ran out the door and got in the cars, speeding off towards the Belikov home.

**Dimitri POV**

As I was waiting for the others, Viktoria came to sit with me. Her eyes were red-rimmed from crying.

"What did the others say?" I asked quietly.

"They're all freaking out back there." Viktoria replied sadly.

"Lissa and the others are on their way." I said, wrapping my arm around my sister. She leaned her head on my shoulder.

"I'm scared." she whispered.

"Me too, Vika. Me too."

We sat in silence for the next fifteen minutes before the whole gang—including Abe and Janine—arrived. Viktoria sprang up from her chair and ran to Adrian. I noticed that he, along with Lissa and Mia, was crying. Lissa sat next to me.

"How are you doing?" Lissa asked, sniffling.

My body shook as tears ran down my face. "Not good, Lissa. I'm terrified." I replied brokenly.

Lissa wrapped her arms around me. "She'll be fine. I know she will. She _has _to be fine." Lissa rambled hysterically. I think that she was trying to convince herself as much as she was trying to convince me.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

We had been sitting there for an hour when my phone buzzed. It was a text from Karolina.

**Sonya is having the baby. Any news on Rose yet?**

I looked up. "Sonya's having the baby." I announced. I tried to put some enthusiasm into my words, but I just couldn't. I was too despaired over Rose.

"I should go down . . . I'll be back, okay?" Viktoria said, looking at everyone. We all nodded, and she headed back to Sonya's hospital room to wait.

**No news yet. Vika's coming down to Sonya's room for a bit.**

I waited for Karolina to text back.

**Okay, good. She can watch Paul and Zoya. And Dimitri . . . I'm so sorry about Rose. I hope she'll be okay.**

I felt a tear roll down my face.

**So do I, Karolina. So do I.**

Karolina didn't text me back after that. We all sat in silence, no one knowing what to say.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Viktoria returned an hour later.

"No news yet?" she asked.

I shook my head. "How is the baby?"

Viktoria smiled. "She's very healthy." she replied.

"What did she name her?" I asked.

"Raisa Stepania Belikova."

My eyes watered at the _Raisa. _"Did she do that for Rose?"

Viktoria nodded. Raisa was another form of Rose. I was going to have to thank Sonya for that.

Viktoria sat down beside Adrian once more. He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her forehead, and she relaxed into him. The gesture made my longing for my Roza intensify, and I looked hopelessly at the door to Rose's operating room.

_Whoever is up there, please let her be okay. I don't ask for much, but I'm asking for this. Please just let her and our babies be okay. Please. _I prayed to whoever was listening.

Finally, a half an hour later, the doctor came out. I sprang up from my chair and ran over to her. I saw Christian shaking Lissa awake, because she'd fallen asleep on his shoulder.

"Is she alright?" I asked.

"Rose is going to be fine. When she wakes up, we're going to get an ultrasound done to determine if your babies are okay." she replied.

"Can I see her?"

"Yes. She's still asleep, but she'll be awake soon. But only you can come in for now." she said, looking pointedly at the gathering of people. I nodded, and she led me to Rose's room. Before I left, I tossed my phone to Viktoria.

"Text Karolina and tell her that Rose is okay." I told her, then walked away.

Dr. Zeklos led me down a hall and stopped at the second-last room. "She's in there. I'll leave you alone."

I nodded gratefully to the doctor, and she walked away.

I took a deep breath, preparing myself to see Rose. I knew she would be all bandaged up, so I had to prepare myself to see that.

Seconds later, I walked in. My heart clenched painfully at the sight of Rose.

She was hooked up to multiple monitors. She had a bandage wrapped around her head, and her beautiful face was covered in cuts. Her left arm and leg were in casts, and I could only imagine what the bandage around her torso would be like.

A sob escaped my mouth. I pulled a chair over to the right side of her hospital bed and held her hand, tears running down my face. My entire body shook with the grief that was tearing me apart on the inside. I couldn't stand to see her in this condition. It absolutely broke my heart.

I reached my hand out to stroke her cheek. She didn't stir; if it hadn't been for the steady rise and fall of her chest, I would have thought that she was dead.

I felt like yelling at the sky. _Why us? Why!_ I wanted to yell, but I didn't.

I sat and murmured to her in Russian, knowing how much she loved it when I did that.

I don't know how long I sat and stared at her face before her eyes opened.

"Roza." I breathed. I squeezed her hand.

"Hey, comrade." she whispered hoarsely. She cleared her throat and spoke again. "Where am I?"

"Honey, you're in the hospital."

Her expression turned alarmed. "Why?" she asked frantically. Her heart monitor sped up, and I squeezed her hand to calm her down.

"Rose, you were hit by a car. Don't you remember?"

She shook her head quickly, then moaned. "Ugh, my head . . ."

"Don't make any sudden movements. You probably have a concussion."

"My chest hurts." she whimpered. I stroked her cheek with my thumb.

"Honey, you had a punctured lung. They had to operate." I said quietly.

Rose groaned. "Great. And, judging by the casts, I'm guessing I broke my arm and leg too."

I nodded, and she sucked in her breath too quickly, sending her into a coughing fit. She moaned again, pulling her hand from mine to rub her chest. "It hurts."

"Do you want me to get the nurse?" I asked worriedly.

"No!" she said quickly. "Don't leave me." she begged.

"Shh, I won't leave you." I replied in a soothing voice.

"Did Sonya have the baby?" she asked curiously.

I nodded. "Raisa Stepania Belikova. By the way, Raisa is another form of Rose."

Rose's eyes started watering, and I thought it was because she was happy about Sonya naming the baby after her. But then she spoke. "Oh God . . . Dimitri, are the babies okay?" she asked frantically, her heart rate speeding up.

I closed my eyes and inhaled deeply. "We don't know yet. They have to do an ultrasound."

Tears rolled down her face and she reached up to wipe them away, wincing when she hit a few cuts. She then rested her hand on her belly and closed her eyes.

**Rose POV**

I cried as I thought about the babies.

The accident was coming back to me in bits and pieces. I remembered driving back to the hospital and cranking the music, then getting a little too carried away. I remembered seeing the car at the last minute, and not being able to stop before it hit. I slammed my head and then . . . nothing.

If the babies were hurt, it would be my fault. If I hadn't been dancing and not paying attention, I would have noticed the car and had the time to stop.

"Dimitri, if anything happened to them . . . it's my fault." I wailed. I looked down shamefully.

He tilted my head back up. "Why do you say that?" he asked, his brown eyes gazing into mine.

"The accident is starting to come back to me. I wasn't paying attention. I didn't see the car coming at me, so I didn't have time to stop." I cried. My head hurt, but it was nothing compared to the pain in my heart. I felt like I couldn't breathe; like the air was being sucked out of me. My chest was already on fire, and that made it so much worse. I started coughing again, and it hurt like a mother.

"Roza, you can't blame yourself." Dimitri argued.

"But I do." I countered. "And aren't you being a little hypocritical, Dimitri? You shouldn't blame yourself for Viktoria and Adrian being taken, but you do. So don't go telling me not to blame myself for something that actually was my fault!" I growled.

A look of hurt crossed Dimitri's face. I sighed. "Dimitri, I'm sorry. I shouldn't be taking this out on you. I'm just so pissed at myself for not paying more attention to the road. Even though the car that hit me had a red light, I should have been watching." I said, grasping his hand.

Just then, a doctor poked her head in the door. "Ah, Rose. You're awake, I see." she said. I immediately got the feeling that she was friendly and nice, and that I could trust her.

I attempted to smile. "Yeah, I'm awake." I replied.

"That's good, because your other visitors are getting antsy."

Other visitors? I turned to Dimitri. "Who else is here?" I asked.

"Lissa, Christian, Adrian, Vika, Eddie, Mia and your parents." he replied.

My eyes widened. "Oh wow." I mumbled.

"I'm going to let them in after you have your ultrasound. I've called a doctor to come and do that, and he's on his way." the doctor informed us.

I nodded solemnly and squeezed Dimitri's hand tighter. "Doctor . . . do you think that my babies are okay?" I asked quietly.

"There's a good chance, but you never know. I hope that they will be." she replied truthfully.

"Thank you." I said.

The doctor peeked out of the room and down the hallway. "Here he comes now." She ducked out of the room, and a friendly looking doctor came in, wheeling an ultrasound machine with him. He was young; no older than twenty-five. He had pale blond hair and dark, almost black eyes. He was also human.

"Hello, Rose. I'm Dr. Anderson." he said. He had no Russian accent whatsoever, and judging by his last name, he came from North America.

"Hi, Dr. Anderson." I replied.

"Who's this?" he asked, looking at Dimitri.

"I'm Dimitri, Rose's fiance." Dimitri replied.

Dr. Anderson extended his hand to Dimitri, who shook it. He then turned to me. "Well Rose, let's get those babies checked out." he said, flicking the lights out. He plugged the machine in and turned it on. I pulled my hospital gown up, making sure to keep my lower half covered with the blanket.

He squirted the cold gel on my tummy, and I grimaced. He chuckled at my disgruntled expression, then started the ultrasound.

I held my breath as I waited. "I can't seem to—ah, wait. Here we are." he said, pointing to the monitor. I heard the chugging of a heart and saw the small blob, which was slightly bigger than last time, before he moved it to find the other two. "Number two." he murmured as he found the next one. We heard the heartbeat again, and then he moved to find my last baby. It took a few minutes, but he finally found my last peanut. "Number three." I heard the heartbeat, and tears of joy fell from my eyes. Those heartbeats became the most significant thing in my world, reminding me of the special little lives growing inside of me.

"Thank God." I whispered. Dimitri leaned over and kissed me, squeezing my hand tightly.

Dr. Anderson turned the machine off and turned the lights back on. "I wish you a fast recovery, Rose." he said with a smile.

"Thank you." I replied, and he wheeled the machine out. The doctor from before came back into the room.

"What's the verdict?" she asked.

"They're all safe and sound." I replied cheerfully, grinning at the kind doctor.

"That's good. I'll start letting your other visitors in now, if you'd like." she said.

I nodded. "Yes, please."

She smiled, then left.

"She's the one that operated on you, you know." Dimitri said quietly.

"I'll have to thank her."

He rested his hand on my belly. "I'm so glad they're okay." he whispered. He bent over to kiss my stomach. "Daddy loves you." he said to my tummy.

"I better pull my gown back down, before anyone else comes in." I said. He sat back down in his chair, and I pulled my ugly hospital gown back down.

Just then, Lissa burst into the room, followed by Christian. Lissa was sobbing and crying as she threw herself at me. She didn't mean to, but she jostled my bad arm and slammed into my chest, making me wince. "Uh, Liss? Broken arm and stitches in the chest." I said, laughing weakly.

"Oh!" Lissa exclaimed, letting me go. Her hand flew to her mouth. "I'm sorry!"

"It's okay, Liss. You just have to be careful." I replied. I felt her direction of thoughts. She wanted to heal me. "Don't even think about it." I warned her.

"But Rose—"

"But nothing. Especially not while I'm in the hospital."

Lissa sighed. "I guess you're right." She pulled up a chair on the opposite side of Dimitri, and Christian walked up to the bed.

"How are you feeling, Rose?" Christian asked, his blue eyes shining with concern.

"I'm okay. Still kinda groggy from the anaesthetic." I replied.

"That's good. That you're okay, I mean." he added quickly, flashing me a grin.

"And the babies?" Lissa asked.

"They're all perfect." Dimitri replied.

"That's good." Christian said.

They sat with us for a few more minutes before Christian spoke again. "Liss, I think we should go and let someone else come in."

Lissa pulled me in for another hug, being careful not to jostle me again. "I'll be back if I can. If not, I'll be back first thing tomorrow morning, okay?" she said, looking me straight in the eyes.

"Sure, Liss. And really, don't worry about me. I'll be fine." I assured her.

She didn't look convinced, but she let Christian lead her out.

"Get better soon, Rosie." he said.

"You're lucky I can't walk. I might have to shove this cast up your ass." I growled, pointing to my left leg.

"Have fun with that, gimpy." he replied before leaving.

I turned to Dimitri. "Comrade, I might have to kill your charge."

Dimitri chuckled. "Fine, Rose. Be my guest." he replied jokingly.

"Dimitri . . . there's something that I've been meaning to ask you."

"What is it?"

"Did you get Galina?" I asked cautiously.

Dimitri grimaced. "She wasn't there." he replied sullenly.

I rested my hand on his. "There's always next time."

There was a knock on my door. My head whipped over—which, by the way, was _not_ a good idea—and I saw my parents standing in the doorway.

"Hey guys." I said, grinning at them.

"That's my girl. Not even a car accident can keep her down." Abe replied, grinning.

I laughed, which started yet another cough attack. My whole chest was on fire, and it wasn't pleasant. I saw the worried faces of my parents and Dimitri, but I waved my hand dismissively at them. I took a deep breath, then sunk back in my pillows.

"Are you okay, Rose?" Mom asked worriedly.

I nodded. "Just fine. This happens."

She looked skeptical, but didn't dispute it. "Are the babies okay?" she asked.

"They're all fine."

"That's good." Abe commented.

"Good? Old man, it's great." I said teasingly.

Abe rolled his eyes and chuckled. Then, he became serious. "Kiz, how are you feeling?" he asked.

I shrugged, and winced because it hurt my arm. "Sore." I replied simply, then added, "My head hurts. My chest is sore. My arm and leg are killing me. But you know what? I couldn't be happier, just because of the fact that my little peanuts are okay." I rubbed my tummy with my good arm after I finished speaking.

"Rose, if you're in pain, then you should get some painkillers from the doctor." Mom said. "I can go get her, if you want me to."

I thought about it for a minute, assessing my pain. Finally, I nodded. "Thanks, Mom."

She came over to kiss my forehead. "No problem, Rosie."

I smiled at her. She was the only person allowed to call me that. It reminded me dimly of the short time she'd kept me before carting me off to St. Vladimir's, back when I was four years old. I'd held on to those memories so hard when I was younger, and they were part of the reason I'd been so bitter towards my mother. Memories of what she had been compared to what she became. It just wasn't fair to me that I'd been sent away from my mother. The more I thought about her as I got older, the more I'd resent, even hate, her.

She left the room, and Abe grinned at us. "I'm so glad that the babies are okay." he said, coming to sit beside me. He held my other hand, being careful not to jostle my arm. I squeezed his hand as best as I could, considering the cast. "So Kizim, how did the accident happen?"

I grimaced. "After I dropped Lissa and Mia off at the house, I cranked the music and headed back to the hospital. I was seat dancing, and I didn't notice a car not stopping for their red light. By the time I noticed, it was too late to do anything and the car slammed right into my side of the car. I hit my head, and I'm starting to remember parts of the ambulance ride. I think I must have been in and out of consciousness. I remember mumbling to the EMT that my fiance, Dimitri Belikov, was already at the hospital with his sister Sonya Belikova, and then . . . nothing."

"So that's how they knew to come to me . . ." Dimitri murmured. I nodded slowly, remembering what happened last time I moved my head too fast.

My mother returned with the doctor, who held a needle. "Hello Rose." the doctor greeted me cheerfully.

I eyed the needle wearily. I was never one for needles. "Hey." I replied.

The doctor chuckled, seeing my eyes glued to the needle. "Don't worry, I'm not sticking it in you. It's going in your IV tube." she assured me.

I felt myself relax. "Good. What is it?" I asked.

"Morphine. It'll take your pain away, but you'll be a little . . . loopy." she replied, smiling apologetically.

I scoffed. "Doc, it wouldn't be the first time. After all, I deal with lots of Strigoi."

"Ah, so you've been bitten. That's no fun."

"Nope. It sucks."

A small smile appeared on her lips, and she walked over to the right side of my bed. "Relax." she said as she injected the morphine into my IV tube. "There you go, Rose. The morphine should take effect in a few minutes."

"Thank you, Dr. . . ." I realized in that moment that I didn't know her name.

She smacked her face. "I'm sorry, I didn't even introduce myself! I'm Dr. Malina Zeklos."

"Well then, thank you Dr. Z." I said with a grin.

"You're very welcome, Rose." she replied, her smile growing. She left the room.

"I like her." I said.

"I do too. She's been great about this whole thing." Dimitri commented.

Mom sighed. "We'd better be going so that the others can visit. We'll come back tomorrow, okay?"

I nodded, and Abe gave my hand a last squeeze before letting go and standing up.

"Goodnight, little girl. Dimitri." he said, nodding to Dimitri.

"Goodnight, old man." I replied with a snort.

"Goodnight, Abe." Dimitri said.

"Goodnight, my darling Rosie. I'll see you tomorrow. Night, Dimitri."

My eyes watered. "Night, Mom. I love you."

"I love you too." she replied.

Dimitri nodded to her. "Goodnight, Janine."

They left, and we waited for my next visitors.

After a few minutes, I started to feel funny. "Whoa . . . I feel _really_ good." I mumbled.

Dimitri chuckled. "That's good, Roza. Are you in pain?" he asked.

I shook my head. "Nooo! I feel amaaaaaazing!" I slurred. Ha, my mouth wasn't working right.

Eddie, Mia, Adrian and Viktoria appeared in the doorway.

"Whoa!" I exclaimed. "Welcome to the party!"

Eddie, Mia and Viktoria gave me weird looks, but Adrian laughed. "All drugged up I see, little dhampir." he observed.

"Mmhmm. And boy, does it ever feel great! I wanna dance!" I said, trying to get up. Dimitri pushed me back down gently.

"Honey, you can't dance in this condition." he murmured.

I pouted. "Do you doubt my skills, Dimitri?" I asked, hurt.

He shook his head. "Your leg is broken, remember?"

I smacked my face. "Oops! Brain fart!" I exclaimed, dissolving into laughter.

"Is she okay?" Viktoria asked Dimitri, eyeing me warily.

"Dr. Zeklos gave her some morphine a few minutes ago, and it's kicking in now." he replied.

"Yay for morphine!" I shouted.

"Rose, shh!" Dimitri chastised me.

"Sorry." I muttered. I grabbed the remote that adjusted the bed and started playing with it, laughing at myself.

"God, Rose is funny when she's all drugged up." Eddie commented, grinning at me.

"Eddsley, I'm _always_ funny." I replied.

Mia raised an eyebrow. "Dimitri, do you think that the doctor gave her too much morphine?" she asked.

Dimitri sighed. "No, I don't think so. It's probably just the way that it effects Rose."

"So how are the babies?" Adrian asked, coming to sit with me. Everyone pulled up chairs around my bed.

"Les bébés sont toutes d'accord." I replied in french. I was met by the puzzled looks of everyone but Eddie, who had taken french class with me when we were younger.

"Ça c'est bon." Eddie replied.

"Je sais, mon ami. Je suis tellement heureuse qu'ils ne sont pas blessés."

"Could you guys _please_ speak english? Some of us have no idea what you're saying." Viktoria huffed in exasperation.

"She said 'they're fine', and I said 'that's good', then she said 'I know, my friend. I'm so happy that they're not hurt.' " Eddie translated.

"I'm happy too, little dhampir." Adrian said, grinning.

I randomly broke into song. "Un deux trois quatre cinq six sept! Violette, violette. Un deux trois quatre cinq six sept! Violette bicyclette!"

Everyone looked to Eddie for a translation. "One two three four five six seven, purple, purple, one two three four five six seven, purple bicycle." he said, sighing.

"Rose, why are you in the french mood?" Dimitri asked, raising his eyebrow.

I shrugged, then pushed my eyebrow up with my finger. "I can do that too!" I exclaimed.

"Sure, Rose." Mia replied, chuckling. "By the way, that's a really weird song."

"I agree with Mia." Viktoria added. "What does a purple bicycle have to do with anything?"

"I dunno." I replied.

They stayed a little while longer and we chatted about random things until I started yawning.

"Okay, guys." Adrian began, looking at the other three. "I think it's time we left Rose to sleep. Dimitri, are you coming?"

Dimitri shook his head. "I'm staying with Rose tonight."

Adrian nodded. "I'll see the two of you tomorrow, then."

"Bye, everyone." I murmured. They all said their goodbyes and left.

I yawned again. Dimitri turned the lights out, and settled back into his chair.

"Aren't you gonna lay with me?" I asked in surprise.

"Do you want me to?"

"It doesn't matter to me, it's just that it's been so long since I've slept without you . . ."

I saw Dimitri's face soften. "I know. Here, I'll help you scooch over." he replied softly.

He gently moved me over so that he'd have enough room, then slipped his shoes off and covered up. He wrapped his arms around me and started singing me a Russian lullaby. I felt my eyelids drooping, and I drifted off into a peaceful sleep.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

I found myself dreaming, but it was something my own subconscious had invented, for once.

I sat in a rocking chair in a nursery, cradling a tiny baby girl in one arm and an equally tiny baby boy in the other. Dark hair covered their little heads, and they had eyes the colour of milk chocolate.

My little boy yawned. "Is my little Alley Cat tired?" I asked quietly, giving him a tender look.

I heard a chuckle, and looked up.

Dimitri stood a few feet away, cradling our other baby girl. "Aleks is always asleep first. He's a good little man."

I laughed softly. "Yeah, and Anni here is the stubborn one." I replied, nuzzling my tiny daughter's nose. She giggled at me.

Dimitri grinned. "And little Skye is unpredictable."

I got up and walked over to Dimitri. "Can you take Annika while I put Aleksandr in his crib?" I asked.

"Of course." Dimitri replied. I tucked Annika into his other arm, then made my way over to Aleksandr's crib. I laid him down gently, and he yawned again. I stroked his chubby little cheek and whispered, "Goodnight."

I walked back over to Dimitri and grabbed Skylar. "Is my little Skye gonna be fussy tonight?" I asked her, poking her nose.

She gurgled at me in response, reaching for my hair. She played with it until her eyelids started to droop, then finally close.

I tiptoed over to her crib and laid her down cautiously, not wanting her to wake up.

"Two down, one to go." Dimitri murmured, rocking Annika.

"You can handle her tonight." I said, giggling.

Dimitri rolled his eyes, then started singing a Russian lullaby to Annika.

Moments later, he grinned at me triumphantly, then walked over to lay Annika in her crib.

"You are amazing," I murmured, wrapping my arms around his neck.

"I know I am." he replied with a grin before leaning down and capturing my lips with his.

The second his lips touched mine, the entire scene shifted.

We were still in the nursery, only our babies were gone, and we were weeping. Dimitri had his face buried in my hair, and my arms were folded across my flat stomach.

"I'm sorry I couldn't protect you." Dimitri whispered brokenly, his body shaking.

"It's not your fault." I found myself saying.

"But it is, Roza. If I would have gone with you, Galina would have never had the chance to attack you, and the babies . . ." he trailed off, unable to finish his sentence.

"There was nothing you could do. Lissa tried to save them . . ."

"But she couldn't. Galina killed our babies, period. She murdered them, and I couldn't protect them."

My dream was horrifying me, and I pushed myself to wake up.

When I opened my eyes, I had tears running down my face. I shook Dimitri lightly, trying to wake him up. He stirred slightly, but his eyes didn't open.

"Dimitri." I whispered. "Please, Dimitri, wake up."

His eyes slowly fluttered open. "Roza?" he asked sleepily, a yawn escaping his lips.

The moment he said my name, I buried my face in his chest. "Oh Dimitri, it was horrible!" I cried.

He stroked my hair. "Honey, what's wrong?"

I sniffled and looked at him. "I had a nightmare. It started out good. Well, better than good. We had our three little angels, Anni, Skye and Alley Cat, and it was amazing. After we put them to bed, you kissed me, and . . . it was like someone flipped a switch. We were still in the babies' room, but they were gone. We were crying, and you kept saying that it was your fault that they were gone. Something about how if you would have been with us, they would have survived the attack from Galina. I . . . I felt so helpless." I whimpered. "Dimitri, what if it's a sign? Like, maybe the first part was showing me my reward for being careful or something, and the second part was what the outcome would be if stuff kept happening." I added, horrified.

"I won't let the second part happen." Dimitri said fiercely, wrapping his arms around me as much as he could, what with all of the tubes, wires and the casts. "I promise you that nothing will ever happen to our babies. I'd die before I let anything happen to them. Or you, for that matter."

I started breathing faster. "Don't say things like that. It scares me, Dimitri. It makes me feel like it's one or the other, like I can have only you or the babies. It scares me that Galina is still out there, probably watching our every move. It scares me that I'm going to be a teenaged mother. That I'm going to have to take care of three extra lives when I can barely take care of my own. It's so much pressure on us! I can't handle much more worry, Dimitri. I'll explode. I can't deal with the stuff that seems to be constantly thrown at us. _I. Am. Scared. _Period." It was like a floodgate of all of my fears opened, each of them bearing down on Dimitri and I. I hadn't meant to lose it like that, but I couldn't stop myself.

With each thing I said, Dimitri winced. "Roza . . . I didn't know that you felt that way. I'm sorry that Galina got away. I'm sorry that you have to deal with so much. It isn't fair to you. But sometimes, life just isn't fair. We just have to get through it in the best way we know how." he murmured, wiping a tear off of my cheek that I hadn't even known had fallen.

I closed my eyes. "I know. And I know that as long as I have you, we'll all be okay." I replied, resting my good hand on his chest. I snuggled up to him to the best of my ability, which proved to be quite the task. I managed it, and he hugged me gently.

I felt much lighter after getting everything off my chest. I fell asleep faster than I would have ever thought that I could, wrapped safely in the arms of my own guardian angel.

**How did I do? Let me know in a review. Next few chapters are done, so reviews will get you updates sooner!**

**To anyone who is a fan of Clockwork Angel, I just posted a Tessa/Will oneshot so you should check it out and review :)**

**Remember, Reviews=FASTER UPDATE!**


	25. Chapter 26

**A/N: I'm sorry to say it, but this might be the last update for a while. I'm grounded. I'm breaking the rules just by being on my computer now. I hope to be un-grounded soon, so that I can write more, but who knows?**

**I'm sorry that I haven't been able to reply to reviews :( I would have if I could have. Trust me. But it just isn't possible when I'm grounded. Sorry guys!**

**Remember to follow me on Twitter for more info! iloveDimitri081 is my username.**

**Disclaimer: You all know that I'm not Richelle Mead, therefore I don't own VA.**

**P.S. Did you guys see the cover for Bloodlines yet? I did :D**

**CHAPTER **Twenty-Three

**Rose POV**

After two nights in the hospital, Dr. Z had finally given me the O.K. to leave. She'd given me some painkillers in case I needed them.

I hugged her awkwardly with one arm, balanced on my crutches. "Thanks, Doc," I said cheerfully.

Dr. Z smiled. "You're welcome, Rose," she replied, letting go of me. Dimitri reached out to hug her as well, and they shared their goodbyes.

I struggled down the hallway with my crutches. Trying to use them with a broken arm definitely wasn't easy. I managed as best as I could, although my pace was slow. Dimitri walked slowly with me, making sure I didn't fall.

We arrived at the car ten slow minutes later, and Dimitri helped me in. They'd given the Belikovs a rental car until the other one could be fixed, courtesy of the guy who'd hit me.

"Are you sad to be leaving tomorrow?" Dimitri asked as he drove.

"Yeah. I'll miss everyone," I replied.

Dimitri's expression turned thoughtful. "I wonder what Adrian and Viktoria are going to do, since they'll be apart for at least three months," he mused.

I frowned. It didn't seem fair to them to have to be split up, but Viktoria couldn't leave. She still had to finish school. And it wasn't like Adrian could stay here in Baia. Tatiana would never allow it. "It's not fair to them," I voiced my thoughts aloud.

Dimitri nodded. "I agree with you, but there's nothing to be done. Vika can't drop school."

"I know. I guess they'll have to make do with dreamwalking for now."

We chatted lightly the rest of the way home.

It was funny how I already thought of Dimitri's house as _home._ Hell, I already thought of Baia as home. It was, and probably always would be, a second home to me. It made it that much harder to leave.

We parked the car in the driveway, and Dimitri helped me out of the car. I made my way up the walkway, only needing Dimitri's assistance on the few stairs leading to the door.

We didn't even need to knock; Lissa had been waiting by the door for us. She threw the door open and hugged me lightly, cautious not to hurt me. I grinned at her, and hobbled into the house. I took my shoe off—yes, shoe. I could only wear one because of the cast—and hobbled into the living room.

Sonya sat on the couch, cradling a little baby girl. I sank down beside her, and she smiled at me. "Hey, Rose," she greeted me.

"Hey, Sonya. And hello to you, little Raisa," I said the last part in a coo, holding the baby's tiny hand in mine. She looked at me strangely, as if to say "Why is this weird lady holding my hand?"

Everyone else soon came down, even Yeva. We all sat around and talked for most of the day, spending as much time together as possible.

When nighttime came, everyone reluctantly split off to go to bed. Dimitri had to carry me up the stairs, and Christian followed behind him with my crutches.

"Thanks, Sparkles," I said, grinning.

"No problem, Hobbles," he shot back, a wicked smirk on his face.

I rolled my eyes and grinned wider. Christian leaned my crutches against Dimitri's wall and headed to Paul's room for the night.

Dimitri helped me dress into some pajamas. He winced when he saw my extremely wicked and gruesome stitches in my chest and I grimaced.

"I know, it's gross," I sighed.

"And painful looking," Dimitri added. "I wish I could make it better."

I shrugged. "The stitches will dissolve in a few days, and then I'll get Liss or Adrian to make it look not so . . . angry."

Dimitri nodded. "What are you going to do about your arm and leg? Are you going to leave them broken to heal on their own?" he asked.

I nodded in return. "For a few days, at least. I think I need a little dose of what it feels like to not have a kick-ass healer for a best friend."

Dimitri pulled me to him, pressing his body flush against mine. "Don't leave it too long," he murmured.

I grinned. "Meh. I think one more day will teach me enough," I conceded.

Dimitri chuckled. "Good," he replied, flipping the lights off. He helped me into bed and curled himself around me.

Minutes later, I heard him snoring softly behind me.

I couldn't sleep. All I could think about was that I would be leaving this beautiful country tomorrow and not coming back for another three months. It saddened me, but I didn't cry. I accepted that we had to leave at some point. I just wished it didn't have to be so soon.

**Adrian POV**

I waited about an hour to be sure that everyone was asleep. I crept out of bed, taking care to make no noise to wake Christian and Eddie up. I snuck out of the room and tiptoed down the hall to Viktoria's room.

I turned the handle and walked in. Sure enough, she sat up in her bed, waiting for me. A wide grin pulled her lips up at the sides. "I thought you'd never show!" she exclaimed.

I sat beside her on her bed, cupping her face. "I'd never miss our last night together. I want to spend as much time with you as I can," I murmured, leaning in to kiss her softly.

I was going to miss her. There was no denying that fact. I'd miss the way that the sun shone on her beautiful brown hair, highlighting the golden streaks. I'd miss the way that she laughed, snorting loudly and not caring who was listening to her. I'd miss her smile, the full one that took my breath away. I'd miss her voice, the familiar Russian accent of it that made me smile. I'd miss _her_, her bubbly, determined, fierce personality. I'd miss the way that she said 'I love you' whenever we were together. I'd miss the mischievous gleam that I so often saw in her chocolatey brown eyes.

I supposed I'd see her in a dream, but dreams aren't real. They're nothing like the real thing.

She broke away first, her lower lip trembling. A single tear ran down her face, and I brushed it away with the pad of my thumb. "Baby, don't cry. I'll dreamwalk with you as much as I can, and we'll see eachother for real in three months. It won't be so bad," I said, leaning my forehead on hers.

"I'm just going to miss you so much," she whispered, not meeting my eyes. "I wish that I could come with you. We wouldn't have to be apart if it wasn't for school."

I refrained from telling her that I could easily get her a tutor for the academic stuff, and Dimitri could train her. I didn't want to get her hopes up, because her mother would almost definitely say no. And I couldn't take her away from here so soon. Russia was her home. She belonged here, for now at least.

"I know, Vik. I wish things were different too. I'd give anything to be able to see you for real every day, but it's unrealistic. If you decide that in a year, after you've graduated, that you want to come and live in America, then you can."

"Of course I want to!" she exclaimed. "All my life, I've lived in Baia. I've never been anywhere outside of Russia, Adrian. It gets boring."

I grinned. "Good to know," I replied.

We spent a couple of hours together, enjoying eachother's company, before we decided that it was time to go to bed.

"Goodnight, Viktoria," I said, standing by the door.

"Goodnight, Adrian. I love you."

"I love you too," I murmured before leaving her room and slinking back to Paul's. I fell asleep quickly, dreaming of a girl with brown eyes, the one that I loved.

**Rose POV**

When we got back to Court, my sadness was replaced with excitement.

Our new house was absolutely _gorgeous, _and there was even a pool! Lissa had hidden that from me, wanting it to be a surprise.

Our house was two stories. There was wood panelling that was painted a lovely dark green colour covering the sides of the house. A little stone walkway led up to the door, with flowers edging it. We had large bay windows, which were untinted.

When we got inside, I gasped. A large living room was off to the side, painted a rich brown. There was a black leather couch with two matching loveseats and a chair, a giant flatscreen TV, and a plush black carpet in the middle of the room, covering some of the click flooring. The floors were all the same light wood throughout the house, other than the bathrooms, which had tiled flooring.

The kitchen had black granite countertops, black wood cupboards, and all of the appliances were stainless steel. There was an island with a small breakfast bar in the middle of the large room. The walls were painted light green.

There were two bedrooms on the bottom floor, but they were empty. The master bedroom was upstairs, along with another empty room.

We entered the master bedroom, and I nearly fell over. The room was _huge! _A giant king-sized bed was centered against the far wall, a black nightstand on either side, a lamp on each one. The walls were painted cranberry red, and the blankets on the bed matched them perfectly. Another giant TV sat atop a long black dresser. There was a vanity table beside one of two windows.

I hobbled over to the closet and opened the door, revealing a walk-in closet. I opened the other door, which led to the master bathroom. A stand up shower was in one corner, a giant tub in another. The walls were painted a darker red than the bedroom.

"This house is beautiful," I murmured.

"I agree, Rose. It's very nice. Do you want to go check out the backyard?" he asked.

I shook my head. "Not until I'm healed. That pool will just taunt me if I go out now," I replied.

Dimitri laughed. "When are Lissa and Adrian coming over?"

"I'll text her and tell her to come now. Can you carry me back downstairs? I left my phone on the kitchen counter."

"Sure, honey," he said, lifting me into his arms effortlessly.

As he carried me, I texted Lissa. I told her to find Adrian and to get their asses over here to heal me.

Dimitri set me down on the loveseat, and I luxuriated in the clean scent of leather. He sunk down beside me, and we waited for Lissa and Adrian to arrive.

The doorbell rang ten minutes later. Dimitri got up and walked over to the door to open it, revealing Lissa, Adrian and Christian. I waved to them from my spot on the loveseat, before standing up and sitting in the middle of the big couch.

Lissa and Adrian sat on either side of me. Adrian's hand rested on my arm, while Lissa leaned over to place her hand on my leg.

I felt the golden joy of spirit flare up through the bond, and felt my arm and leg mending.

Lissa and Adrian pulled their hands away, the satisfied look on both of their faces that I recognized as the expression their faces always held after using spirit, no matter how small the amount.

Quick as a flash, Lissa's hand was on my ribs and she was healing me. How I didn't see it coming, I didn't know.

I shot her a disapproving look. "Vasilisa Sabina Rhea Dragomir, you little sneak!" I exclaimed.

As soon as I said her name, Adrian and Christian cracked up laughing.

"Sabina Rhea!" Adrian choked out.

Lissa shot them a dark look, especially Christian. "Do you find that funny, boys?" she asked, raising an eyebrow at them. Damn, yet another person who could do that. I only managed it once, because I wasn't even trying to do it. Since then, I haven't been able to.

Christian stopped laughing immediately. "No, Liss. I uh . . . I was laughing at Adrian."

Adrian, who was still laughing, spoke again. "Liss, no offense, but that name is a mouthful. Where did that Sabina come from? I mean, I know your mother's name was Rhea, but I don't understand the Sabina part."

Lissa's expression turned thoughtful. "I think she was my . . . great-grandmother? Great-great-grandmother, maybe?"

I shrugged. "Who knows? All I know is that I need to get these casts removed and the stitches now, I guess," I said, pulling my shirt up to reveal the line of stitches on a faintly scarred part of my skin on my ribs. It looked kind of gross, having stitches there when the cut was healed.

"Let's go, then," Dimitri suggested, getting up from the chair.

I stood up easily, still needing the crutches since I couldn't walk properly with the cast still on my leg.

On our way to the clinic, we ran into Tasha.

"Oh dear, what happened to you?" she asked me.

"Car accident in Russia. One of the reasons we're so late coming back, actually," I replied, reaching up to scratch my neck absentmindedly.

Tasha's hand flew up to cover her mouth as she gasped. "Oh no! Are you okay?"

I smiled. "I'm fine, thanks. Lissa and Adrian just fixed me up, I'm just going to get the casts and stitches removed now."

"Stitches?" she questioned.

"I punctured a lung and they had to operate," I explained. "Not the most pleasant thing in the world. I'm lucky that my babies and I survived," I added, then realized what I'd said.

Dimitri and I hadn't planned on making the pregnancy public knowledge until I'd _really_ begun to show, because we didn't know how people would react to two dhampirs conceiving children together.

Tasha's head whipped between Dimitri and I rapidly, processing what I'd just said. "Dimka..?" she mumbled, turning to face him.

He nodded slowly. "It's true," he confirmed.

"But . . . but . . . I don't understand!" she stuttered, her pale face turning paler.

"Neither do we. Maybe it's something to do with my dying and coming back. Who knows? All we know is that they're his," I replied.

Tasha looked shaken. "I have to go. I have a meeting," she muttered before stalking off.

"What's her problem?" Dimitri asked.

"I have no idea," I replied, even though I knew exactly what it was. She knew for sure that she had absolutely no chance with him now, since he and I could have children together. It made her whole world come crashing down.

Dimitri shrugged it off. "Whatever, lets just go get you taken care of so that we can go swimming. I very much like seeing you in a bikini, you know," he whispered huskily in my ear.

I smacked him away. "Pig," I joked, starting to hobble along again.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

As soon as Dimitri and I left the clinic, I started jumping around. "I'm free!" I cried, whooping with joy.

Dimitri pulled me close. "I haven't been able to properly hold you lately," he murmured, wrapping his arms around me.

I flung my arms around him, pleased that I was able to do so again. "It feels great to just move, you know?"

Dimitri chuckled. "I know how you feel. I broke my leg when I was sixteen."

I hugged him tighter, then pulled away abruptly. "Last one to the house loves Stan!" I shouted before breaking into a run.

I had a few seconds head start over Dimitri, but he soon overtook me. I tried to match my strides to his long ones, but it was like I was a wiener dog trying to keep up with a greyhound. Still, I pushed myself as hard as I can, and we arrived at the house at the same time, both breathing heavily from the exertion.

"I guess that neither of us love Stan," Dimitri remarked, grinning.

"Guess not."

I opened the door and took my shoes off, and found Lissa, Christian and Adrian in the exact same positions that we'd left them in.

"You guys coming for a swim?" Dimitri asked them.

"DUH!" they chorused.

"I texted Mia. Her and Eddie are coming over in a few minutes to swim with us," Lissa informed me.

"Thanks, Liss!" I said, grinning. "I'll be back, I'm going to get changed," I announced, running up the stairs.

I walked over to a box labelled 'Bathing Suits and Other Swim Stuff'. I pawed through it, looking for one that appealed to me.

"Aha!" I exclaimed when I found it. I'd picked a bright red spaghetti strap halter neck bikini that I knew looked killer on me. I quickly changed into it, then ran into the bathroom to inspect.

I looked good, if I do say so myself. Dimitri would be drooling all over the place.

I spotted the small, defined bump between my hips. I smiled and rested my hand over it before turning away to grab a towel.

Before leaving the bedroom, I grabbed some matching red flip flops from the box and slipped them on my feet. I didn't bother wrapping the towel around myself.

I ran down the stairs and turned to Dimitri. "The bedroom's all yours, Dimi."

"Thanks," he said, grinning. He ran upstairs.

"We all brought our bathing suits," Christian informed me.

I laughed. "Well, go get changed. Someone can go to the other upstairs bedroom and the other two can use the other two down here."

They all nodded and split up, Adrian running upstairs and the other two running down the hall to the bedrooms.

I walked out to the kitchen to get a glass of water while I waited. I opened the fridge, and found that it was _fully stocked. _"Fridge, you and I are going to be great friends. I'm going to take some of your food now," I said.

"Roza, were you just talking to the fridge?" Dimitri asked from behind me, scaring the crap out of me.

"Jesus!" I exclaimed, nearly droppingthe jug of water and container of strawberries that I clutched in my hands. "You scared the hell out of me!"

Dimitri grinned devilishly. "You didn't answer my question," he reminded me.

I rolled my eyes. "For a matter of fact, yes. I did happen to be talking to the fridge, and I am unashamed about it," I replied levelly. I set the strawberries and water down on the counter, and was pleased to find that there were glasses in the cupboards. I grabbed one and filled it to the brim with the icy cold water. "Want some?" I asked. Dimitri nodded, and I grabbed a second glass and filled it.

I picked up a plump red strawberry and bit into it, my lips puckering at the sweetness. The cold of the strawberry made my teeth ache dully, reminding me of my slightly sensitive teeth. Huh. _Maybe I should start brushing my teeth with Sensodyne, _I thought, making me laugh out loud.

Dimitri raised an eyebrow at me, his expression questioning. "What are you laughing about?"

"Just something I was thinking about," I replied breezily, grinning.

"Care to elaborate?" he said questioningly.

"Well, when I bit into my strawberry, the coldness of it made my teeth ache. I remembered that I had sensitive teeth, which made me think 'Maybe I should start brushing my teeth with Sensodyne'." I explained, taking another bite of the delicious strawberry. I held the container out to Dimitri. "Want one?" I asked.

Dimitri's nose wrinkled up. "I was never a fan of strawberries." he said simply.

I felt my eyes widen. "Are you serious? Dimitri, strawberries are . . ." I trailed off, groping for the right word to describe my love of strawberries.

"Utterly and completely stupendous?" a voice from the hallway suggested. Adrian sauntered into the kitchen, a lazy grin on his face. He wore white swim trunks with a pattern of red and black Hawaiian hibiscus flowers.

"What he said," I said to Dimitri, gesturing toward Adrian. I held the container out to Adrian, who happily took one.

"I just don't like them very much. Maybe it's the seeds . . ." Dimitri considered, cocking his head to the side.

"Peel them," Adrian suggested before taking a bite of his strawberry. I picked up with glass, which was now slightly slippery with the condensation that had gathered on the outside. I took a huge gulp, satisfied with the iciness of it.

"I can't be bothered with it," Dimitri replied, taking a swig of his water.

Lissa and Christian walked into the kitchen just then. Lissa wore a lime green bikini with thick straps that crisscrossed in the back, and Christian wore icy blue swim trunks with random black lines all over them.

"We going outside now?" Christian asked.

I asked, "Aren't we going to wait for Mia and Eddie?"

"I told them to go straight to the backyard," Lissa replied.

Shrugging, I grabbed a few more strawberries and my glass of water before making my way to the glass double-doors a few feet away that opened up to the backyard.

We walked out into the crisp night air, draping our towels over chairs. A giant pool sat in the ground in front of us. There was a diving board at the deep end, as well as a hot tub a few feet away.

"How deep does it go?" I asked Lissa.

"Eight feet, I think."

I nodded, and headed for the deep end. Taking a deep breath, I dove into the heated water, feeling it slide over my skin. I dove straight to the bottom before swimming back up to the surface.

"Nice form, Rose!" Adrian complimented me.

I grinned. "Thanks. Let's see if you can do it better," I challenged him.

"Oh you're on, little dhampir!" he exclaimed, standing at the edge of the deep end. I watched him fill his lungs with air before arcing gracefully into the water, his body curving exactly right.

He popped up beside me, a victorious smirk on his face. "I totally won," he said smugly.

I rolled my eyes. "Whatever," I grumbled, sliding underneath the water. I saw the bubbles as someone plunged underneath the water beside me, and noticed that it was Dimitri. The pool was lit underwater, so I saw his smile that was directed at me. I grinned, then mouthed, "I love you."

He grabbed my hand, and we began swimming to the other end of the pool. We saw Lissa and Christian walking down the stairs into the shallow end.

I popped up a few feet away from them, followed by Dimitri. "You guys are so boring!" I exclaimed. "Why didn't you just jump?"

Lissa shrugged. "Didn't want to," she replied simply.

"And you?" I asked, turning to Christian.

"Liss wanted me to come with her," he replied.

I laughed. "You are _so_ whipped, Chris."

He glared at me, then grumbled, "Whatever," followed by something that sounded a lot like "ditch."

Just then, I heard the sound of the gate to the backyard opening. Eddie and Mia emerged from the other side, their towels wrapped firmly around them.

I grinned and waved. "Come to join the party?" I asked.

"Duh!" Eddie exclaimed, putting his towel with ours. He was wearing bright orange swim trunks.

"We wouldn't miss a chance to come swim in your amazingly awesome pool, Rose," Mia added, doing the same. She wore a dark purple one-piece bathing suit that had no back, just a simple strap across her mid-back. There was a flowery light purple pattern on it.

"Well come on in, guys. The water's nice and warm," Dimitri said with a grin.

"I hope it's not warm because you guys peed in it," Eddie joked.

I snapped my fingers. "Dang it, how did you guess?" I asked before erupting into loud laughter.

Mia and Eddie shook their heads at me before running and doing cannonballs into the pool.

I turned back to Lissa and Christian. "See? _They're _fun." Lissa and Christian just rolled their eyes at me before walking into deeper water. Adrian had finally swam over to join us.

Once Eddie and Mia arrived over to where we stood, I yelled, "Last one to the other end of the pool has to run around Court in their bathing suit!" I plunged under the water and swam as fast as I could, not wanting to be the last. Dimitri was right beside me, our speeds evenly matched.

When I touched the wall at the other end, I swam back up to the surface victoriously. Dimitri popped up beside me, followed by Eddie, Christian, then Mia.

Lissa floated up, a disgruntled expression on her angelic face. "Aw, man!" she cried.

I grinned evilly at her. "When we're done swimming, you have to run around Court in your bikini, Liss."

"Yeah, whatever," she replied sullenly.

My expression softened. "Hey, how about I go with you? I don't mind," I told her honestly.

Her expression brightened. "Really? You'd really do that?" she asked.

"For you, I'd do anything," I replied. I pulled myself up out of the pool and stood up on the diving board. "Watch out, guys," I said to everyone else. They all moved away from the diving board.

I bounced up and down a few times before throwing myself into the air, executing a perfect somersault in midair. I'd always loved doing somersaults because they were fun to do.

We fooled around in the pool for another half hour before we decided to get out of the pool, meaning that it was time for Lissa and I to run through Court with just our bikinis on.

"I can't believe I'm doing this," I said under my breath. Lissa gave me a sidelong glance, a nervous smile on her face.

"Let's just get it over with," she mumbled.

The two of us walked over to the gate, taking deep breaths. I unlatched it, and then we ran out together.

People stared at us as we ran, the Dragomir princess and her guardian. I groaned internally; people would probably never take us seriously again after this.

We ran with our heads ducked, praying that no one would recognize us. We received a few whistles from piggish guys, but nothing bad.

Well, until we were on our way back.

Queen Tatiana was leaving a house in the residential area. I swore under my breath. She had a clear view of us, and by the look on her face, she was _not_ impressed.

"Vasilisa, Guardian Hathaway, might I ask why the two of you are running around in swimwear?" she asked, her eyes narrowed.

I scrambled for something to say. Lissa had nothing, so it was up to me. "Your Majesty, there is a very simple explanation for that."

"And what would that be?"

"You see, we were swimming in my pool when a swarm of mosquitoes swooped down and tried to eat us alive. We barely escaped with our lives," I replied, maybe a little too dramatically.

_Great, Rose. She's never gonna buy that,_ Lissa said through the bond.

"Very well. Don't let it happen again," replied Tatiana in a stern voice, though I could see amusement glinting in her eyes.

Lissa and I bowed hastily before sprinting back to the house.

Once we were through the gate, we fell to the ground in a fit of laughter.

"She totally bought it!" I choked out through the giggles.

"I didn't think that she would! Rose, you're brilliant!" Lissa exclaimed.

"What's going on?" asked Dimitri.

"Well, we were running back and we just so happened to be running by when Tatiana was coming out of someone's house. She wasn't impressed by our behaviour, and she asked why we were running around Court in our 'swimwear'. Well, I told her that we had been swimming when a bunch of mosquitoes attacked and we just ran away," I explained, erupting into more laughter.

"And she actually believed you?" Christian asked, the ghost of a smile playing at his lips.

Lissa and I nodded. "It was pretty hilarious," Lissa said, grinning.

"I wish I could have saw that," Adrian said, laughing.

"Me too. It would have been pretty funny," Mia added. She then looked to Eddie, who nodded.

"We're gonna go home now. We'll see you guys tomorrow," Eddie announced, taking Mia's hand.

"Okay. See ya later, guys," I said.

They walked out the gate, locking it behind them. The rest of us went inside to change, and then Lissa, Christian and Adrian left as well.

I looked outside, and the sky was starting to lighten. My stomach rumbled, making Dimitri laugh.

"Hungry?" he asked.

"Maybe a little," I replied.

"Then how about we make some dinner?"

"Dinner sounds pretty good right now, comrade."

We went to the kitchen, picking through the fridge and cupboards for something to eat.

Soon, we had everything assembled to make homemade pizza. Dimitri gave me the task of making the dough, while he cooked hamburger and bacon to put on top of it.

I followed the directions as closely as I could. When I went to pour flour into a measuring cup, it came out too fast. Flour overflowed the measuring cup and flew up in a puff, making me cough. Dimitri turned around and saw the mess that I had made. I went to move my bangs aside, not knowing that I had flour all over my hands. It got all over my face, making Dimitri laugh.

"You think this is funny, eh?" I asked, pointing to my face and the mess on the counter. He nodded. "Then I guess you'll think this is hilarious!" I yelled, flinging flour at him.

It hit him right in the face, and I started giggling. "Oh, so this is how you wanna play?" he asked, grabbing a handful of flour.

I started backing away. "Don't even think about it!" I exclaimed. He began moving toward me, and I found myself backed against the fridge. He edged closer, grinning evilly at me. He threw the flour at me, getting it all over the front of me.

I dashed around him and grabbed more flour, and the war began.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Ten minutes later, we sat on the floor, leaning against the island. There was flour all over the kitchen, not to mention we were covered in it.

I leaned against Dimitri's shoulder, and he wrapped his arms around me. "How about we order a pizza?" I asked, smiling at him.

"Good idea," he replied, kissing my temple.

I peeked up at him. "Even when you're covered in flour, you're still impossibly sexy," I told him, snuggling closer.

"And you're still heartbreakingly beautiful."

I giggled. "You're just saying that to get me into bed," I replied. "And I'll tell you a secret: It's working."

Dimitri shivered. "How about we go get a shower, _then _order pizza?" he suggested.

"I like that idea."

Without another word, he swept me up into his arms and ran upstairs to the master bathroom.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

I left our shower feeling lighter, almost buoyant. It was nice to finally have some good after all of the bad.

We went back downstairs, ordered a pizza, and cleaned the kitchen while we waited for it to arrive.

By the time the pizza arrived, we had finished cleaning the whole kitchen, which was nothing short of a miracle. There had been flour caked everywhere.

We ate in the living room so that we could watch a movie. I put 'Eclipse' on and snuggled up beside Dimitri on the couch. I grabbed a piece of pepperoni/bacon/hamburger pizza and turned my attention to the TV. **(A/N: I couldn't think of another movie, and that's what I'm watching as I write this XD)**

"To think that I used to be in love with Edward Cullen," I mused.

Dimitri raised an eyebrow. "You used to be in love with Edward Cullen?" he asked, his expression showing his amusement.

"It was a phase, Dimitri. Lissa and I had our whole 'Twilight' phase a few years ago. I was always Team Edward and she was always Team Jacob. I never understood what she liked so much about him. He's always annoyed me from the minute I read about him."

Dimitri looked shocked. "You actually read?" he asked in fake surprise.

I smacked him lightly on the head. "Shut up. You know that I read."

He nudged my arm playfully. "Yeah, I know."

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

When the movie finished, we took our garbage to the kitchen.

I looked out the window and smiled. "Dimitri, look. It's sunrise."

Dimitri followed my gaze, and a dazzling smile lit his face. "It's beautiful."

I sighed. "Yeah, it is. It's also a sign that we should probably get to bed."

Dimitri chuckled. "Tired?" he asked.

"A little," I replied, stifling a yawn.

He held out his hand, which I took in my own. Together, we walked up the stairs and into our room. I pulled the curtains closed, throwing the room into blackness. Dimitri turned one of the bedside lamps on so that neither of us would fall trying to navigate the room.

I padded barefoot to the bathroom to brush my teeth. Once I was done, Dimitri did the same.

I plopped down on the memory foam bed, luxuriating in the comfort of it. Dimitri soon joined me, and we snuggled close to eachother. He reached over to turn the lamp off.

"Night, Dimitri," I murmured.

"Goodnight, Rose," he replied, wrapping his arms more tightly around me.

I soon fell into the best sleep I'd had in weeks.

**Four Months Later ~ 17 Weeks Pregnant**

Four months seems like a long time, doesn't it?

Not for me.

The past four months passed in the blink of an eye.

As soon as possible, Lissa made me go on maternity leave. The two of us had to go speak with the head guardian, Hans Croft. That had been last month, when I was very clearly showing. I'd been granted my maternity leave, and Lissa had been given a temporary guardian.

Serena was a good guardian, but she was no me. I took comfort in the fact that Lissa still had Eddie, though.

My belly grew with every passing day. Today, we would be finding out the genders.

I couldn't contain my excitement as Dimitri and I made our way hand-in-hand to the Court clinic. Although it had been four months, people still stared at Dimitri and I as if we were freaks. I almost flipped a few of them off, but a gentle squeeze of Dimitri's hand stopped me. If they didn't like it, too bad for them.

"I have an appointment with Dr. Lewis," I informed the secretary once we arrived.

"Name?" she asked in a bored tone.

"Rose Hathaway."

"The doctor will be with you in a moment," she said in the same tone as before. _Wow,_ I thought. _She must _really _love her job._

As Dimitri and I waited to be called on, we debated on what we thought they were going to be.

"Two girls, one boy. I guarantee it," I said. I couldn't shake the feeling that what I'd dreamed of (the first part, at least) would be true.

"Two boys, one girl," Dimitri argued.

"We'll see."

"I guess we will."

Moments later, the secretary called my name. "Right this way," she said unenthusiastically. Dimitri and I rose from our seats to follow her.

She led us down a hall to a bright yellow room that I'd been in twice before. Charts covered the walls with information about pregnancy.

Dr. Lewis walked in minutes later. She was a tall Moroi with light, almost blonde hair that rested on her shoulders. She had light brown eyes, and a ready smile.

"Hello, Rose. Dimitri," she said, nodding to Dimitri.

"Hey, Doc," I replied, smiling.

"So the big day is here. Are you ready to find out the genders of your babies?"

"Very."

"Then lets get this show on the road!" said Dr. Lewis enthusiastically, wheeling the machine over. She turned it on, then flipped the lights off. She then squirted the annoyingly cold gel on my tummy and got started.

No matter how many times I saw my babies on the monitor, it never ceased to amaze me. They had grown so much since the first time Dimitri and I had seen them, and it was absolutely amazing.

She moved to the one on the left-most side. "Okay, this one is a little boy."

I looked up to Dimitri, who was grinning. He squeezed my hand a little more tightly, and I turned back to the monitor.

"This one is a . . . girl," said the doctor.

I couldn't help the huge grin that spread across my lips. Dimitri even started tearing up at the prospect of having a little girl.

"What about the last one?" Dimitri asked, his eyes fixed on the monitor.

"Patience, grasshopper," I replied.

Dimitri rolled his eyes at me.

Dr. Lewis moved to the last baby. "Drumroll, please!" she said, grinning. "Nah, I'm kidding. Any predictions?"

"Girl!" I exclaimed at the same time that Dimitri said boy.

The doctor laughed. "Well, sorry to disappoint, but it's another girl!"

"YES!" I exclaimed. "Dimitri, never doubt a mother's intuition."

Dimitri grinned. "Sure, Roza. And Dr. Lewis, I'm not disappointed. I'm just as happy as I would have been if it were another boy."

"That's good," Dr. Lewis replied. "Any names?" she asked.

"Annika Viktoria, Aleksandr Mason and Skylar Vasilisa," I replied.

"I like them!" Dr. Lewis exclaimed enthusiastically. I saw her printing the pictures, which she handed to Dimitri before handing me some paper towel to wipe the rest of the gel off of my stomach.

After wiping it all off, I pulled my shirt down and stood up. "So, we'll see you in a month?" I asked. Dr. Lewis nodded, and then Dimitri and I left.

Lissa was waiting back at our house, dying to know the genders. When we walked through the door, she tackled Dimitri, knowing that she could possibly hurt the babies if she tackled me.

"Tellmetellmetellme!" she chanted.

Dimitri gently removed her arms from himself. "What do you think?" he asked.

"This is no time for guessing games!"

I laughed. "Fine. Two girls and one boy."

Lissa's squeal nearly made me go deaf. "OH MY GOD! OH MY GOD OH MY GOD THAT'S AWESOME!" She threw her arms around me, squeezing me tight. It was already awkward to hug people because my belly got in the way, but I managed. "I have to go tell people! Oh, and I need to start designing their room! I'll see you guys later!" she exclaimed before dashing out the door.

"She seemed excited," Dimitri commented, grinning at me.

I rolled my eyes and smiled. "Your family is gonna freak, Dimitri."

"I know. Where's Abe and Janine?" he asked.

My eyebrows shot up. "I actually have no idea. I haven't seen them around for a few days, have you?" Dimitri shook his head. "Meh. We'll call them later."

Dimitri smiled. "Okay. Go watch some TV, I'll make you some lunch, okay?"

I nodded. "Thanks, Dimi."

He brought my hand up to his lips and kissed it. "You're welcome, Roza. Now relax, and I'll make you one of my amazing grilled cheeses."

"Just one?" I asked, grinning at him.

He turned me toward the living room. "Two."

"You know me so well," I said as I walked to the living room.

I sat down on one end of the couch and reclined it. It felt nice to put my feet up. I grabbed the remote and turned the TV on and flipped through the channels. I kept one hand rested on my belly.

The smell of grilled cheese wafted in from the kitchen. "Comrade, you have no idea how good that smells!" I shouted. I heard his laughter, and then I turned back to the TV.

Suddenly, I felt a small flutter and then a nudge. I felt my eyes widen and my mouth fall open. I sat and waited for it to happen again, hardly breathing as I did. Sure enough, I felt another small nudge on my hand, followed by another flutter.

"DIMITRI! OH MY GOD COME HERE!" I yelled, my excitement taking over. I heard a clatter in the kitchen before Dimitri came running in, stake in hand.

"What is it? What's wrong?" he asked frantically, his eyes scanning the room for danger.

"Nothing's wrong, Dimitri! Just come here for a minute!" I said, waving him over to sit beside me.

Sighing with relief, he lowered his stake and came to sit with me. I took his hand and rested it over the right side of my belly. His expression turned puzzled and he was about to say something, but I silenced him with a look. We waited a few minutes before I felt the flutter and nudge. I knew he felt it too, by the look on his face.

"Roza? Did one of them just..?"

I nodded eagerly, my eyes brimming with happy tears. "They're moving," I said, moving his hand to the baby in-between the other two. Sure enough, she kicked as well.

A radiant smile appeared on Dimitri's face as he moved his hand to the left side of my belly where little Aleksandr was. I felt a flutter, but no kick.

"He's moving," I whispered. "He's just not kicking. Try talking to him," I suggested.

Dimitri began murmuring to my belly in Russian, rubbing it as he spoke. I felt the babies moving, and it was the strangest feeling ever. But he still didn't kick. I had a feeling that he wouldn't be doing much kicking, and that the girls were more active. As Dimitri spoke, they kicked and moved. A _lot._

Sighing, Dimitri got up. "I'll be right back. I'm going to get our grilled cheeses," he informed me. I nodded, rubbing my belly.

"Mommy loves you," I said after Dimitri walked away. I felt a small nudge under my hand, making me smile. Lissa would _freak_ when she found out that they were moving.

Dimitri came back with two plates. He handed me mine before sitting down beside me, balancing his plate on his knee.

We ate in comfortable silence. I rested my head on his shoulder, and he smiled down at me. This was turning out to be the perfect day.

Minutes later, the doorbell rang. Since I was done my food, I got up to get it.

I made my way to the front door and unlocked it. I turned the doorknob and pulled it open.

When I who was behind the door, I freaked out. "OH MY GOD!" I squealed.

**Hmmm, who's behind the door? I wanna know what you guys think. Review and tell me what you thought!**

**Remember, follow me on twitter :)**

**Until next time (who knows when that will be -_-)**

**Review!**


	26. Chapter 27

**IMPORTANT A/N. MUST READ.**

Dear Readers:

I'm sososososososososososo sorry, guys! Believe it or not, I'm still grounded cuz my dad is a butthole...I feel so bad because I haven't given you guys anything in over a month! I'm using Old Junker right now just so I can explain...I just feel really really horrible :(

See, if my dad would let me use my netbook for like, two seconds, I would be able to update Together Forever. I have the next chapter done and everything!

But no.

I'm only allowed to use my computer for school related things...And trust me, I've tried looking for it. The man's a genius when it comes to hiding things! (He's the kind of guy that will hide things in the ceiling, or hide it in a really good spot then forget where he even hid it.) Whenever my mom takes my stuff, it's always easy to find (she hides things under pillows and sometimes on top of the fridge.)

If I could see where I left off on my stories, I could continue writing in my binder. Since I can't, I've started a new story (any Mortal Instruments fans out there?), wrote one one-shot (does anyone read Kissed By An Angel?) and a few poems...and I'm gonna write more. Plus, I've started a new original story, completely of my own imagination. Vampires, of course ;)

But yeah...if I could only see where I left off writing on my computer, I could keep writing for my stories that I already have posted. But I've started new chappies for a few and I can't remember what I wrote (-_-).

Again, I'm really really really sorry about not updating in forever...it's hard on me too. I haven't had my netbook or my BlackBerry in over a month, and my iPod Touch was taken from me a few days ago. Now, all I have is my writing binder, a television and supervised computer sessions on Old Junker. (This isn't supervised, I snuck on XD) So trust me when I say that I'm suffering just as much as you guys, and I can't even begin to express how sorry I am. I hope you guys stick with me, because I'm gonna try to get Little Blue (my netbook) back this weekend.

-Sarah

P.S. I'm probably changing my pen name...I don't like it anymore :P I'll post an A/N before I do!

P.P.S. If you have read Kissed By An Angel by Elizabeth Chandler, I wrote a one-shot! Lacey/Tristan, btw :)

P.P.P.S. The new MI fic that I'm working on is AH, and centered around Jace and Clary. I hope you guys will read it when I can post it! :)


	27. Chapter 28

**Sorry, another A/N.**

_**Umm...well, my plans of getting my stuff back this weekend kinda crashed...and burned. I just thought I'd tell you guys that, and also that my penname is no longer vampirelover081, as I'm sure you all clearly see. I'm now . :) as I'm also sure you can all clearly see...lol I'm babbling.**_

_**Make You Feel My Love is the name of my new Mortal Instruments story :D I posted it yesterday, since I'd emailed the first two chapters to a friend back when I still had Little Blue :P I know I can't really ask for anything, but to anyone who reads the series, PLEASE check it out! I have a really good feeling about it!**_

_**And in my spare time, I've started **_**another**_** Mortal Instruments fic :D I dunno why, but my creative juices are really flowing for the series! Not that I'm turning my back on Vampire Academy! I could never do that :O I love all of my fans way too much!**_

_**Once I can post the actual chapters for my stories, I'll delete both author's notes :)**_

_**See ya everybody!**_

_**~. :) or Sarah :P**_

_**P.S. If anyone has any questions about anything, feel free to ask :) I sneak on Old Junker a lot XD just like now :D**_


	28. Chapter 29

_**A/N: SHE RETURNS! Haha finally, I got my stuff back from my dad yesterday :D This chapter is pretty long, and extremely fluffy and cute...erm, until the end :P hehe I'm sooo evil :)**_

_**If you guys like MI, I have two new stories! Make You Feel My Love and An Interesting Turn of Events :) I also started a Forbidden Game story, A Second Chance At Life. If you love Jenny/Julian and HATE Tom, then that is the story for you! Haha I missed you guys...**_

_**Disclaimer: Guys, do the disclaimer.**_

_**Adrian: This again?**_

**_Me: Yes._**

**_Dimitri: Why?_**

**_Me: Because I want you to._**

**_Eddie: Guys, we should probably do it. I mean, she can do things to us in this story._**

**_Adrian: Good point._**

**_Adrian, Dimitri, Eddie and Christian: Sarah doesn't own Vampire Academy or any of us. Richelle Mead does._**

**_Me: Thanks guys!_**

**_Christian: You're welcome! I love you!_**

**_Me: *blushes* Aww, Chris, I love you too!_**

**_Adrian, Dimitri and Eddie: Gross._**

**_Haha :P_**

**_~I Heart Herondale Boys~_**

**CHAPTER **Twenty-Four

_When I saw who was behind the door, I freaked out. "OH MY GOD!" I squealed._

Standing before me was Viktoria Belikova. I heard Dimitri coming up behind me.

"Surprise," Viktoria said, grinning.

I tackled her, happy tears flowing from my eyes. "Ohmigod, I'm so happy to see you!" I exclaimed, squeezing Viktoria tight.

"Can't . . . breathe . . ." Viktoria mumbled.

I let go of her, a sheepish smile on my face. "Sorry," I said. "I'm just so happy to see you! Where's everyone else?" I asked.

Viktoria frowned. "They couldn't come. I have no idea why, though. And I know that you guys are coming down next week, but I wanted to see you guys earlier. It's winter break at St. Basil's anyway," she explained. "I've been planning this with Dimitri for a week."

"You knew she was coming and you didn't tell me?" I asked, hearing the accusation plain in my voice.

He kissed my temple. "Vika and I wanted to surprise you."

I grinned. "Well, you guys sure did. Does Adrian know you're here?" I directed the last part to Viktoria.

She shook her head. "I wanted to surprise him too. Mia and Eddie picked me up from the airport."

I laughed. "Then what are we waiting for? Let's head over to his apartment!" I said enthusiastically, hooking my arm through hers. I grabbed my jacket and slipped my boots on. "You coming?" I asked Dimitri.

"Nah. Chris is coming over for a bit."

Yeah. In the past few months, Dimitri and Christian have actually gotten pretty close. They hung out regularly now.

I shrugged. "Okay." I grabbed Viktoria's luggage and handed it to Dimitri. "Go put it in the guest room, please."

Dimitri nodded, ducked down to kiss me quickly, then ran down the hallway.

"Ready?" I asked Viktoria. She nodded, and I shrugged my coat on. Arm in arm, we trudged through the snow towards Adrian's apartment. It worked out perfectly, because Lissa was already there.

On our way, we passed Christian. "Hey Rose—Whoa. Hey Vik!" he exclaimed, noticing Viktoria.

Viktoria grinned. "Hey, Chris. Surprised?" she asked.

Christian grinned back. "A little. What are you doing here?"

Viktoria shrugged. "I wanted a little time with you guys, since it's only Rose, Dimitri and Adrian coming next week."

Christian nodded. "I see. Well, I'll see you later, I guess!"

Viktoria laughed. "Yeah, I guess so!"

With that, we all walked away from eachother. Viktoria and I continued to Adrian's apartment, talking about random things along the way.

Five minutes and a few close calls with patches of ice later, we were at Adrian's door.

I started banging on the door with my fist. "Adrian! Open the damn door! I'm freezing my ass off out here!" I yelled.

I heard his laughter, then the click of the door unlocking. The door opened, and I watched with satisfaction as his jaw dropped.

"Viktoria?" he said, his eyes wide.

Viktoria squealed and jumped into his arms. "Viktoria," he breathed into the crook of her neck, holding her tightly.

"I missed you, Adrian," she whispered.

"I missed you too."

I cleared my throat. "Sorry to ruin the reunion, but it's December and I'm freezing my ass off." I pushed Adrian out of the way and walked in, stamping the snow off my boots on the doormat. I kicked my boots off and walked out to the living room, hearing the door shut behind me.

Lissa waved from her spot on the couch. When she saw Viktoria, she jumped up and tackled her.

"Ohmigosh, Vik! What in the world are you doing here?" she asked.

"I came to visit everyone!" she replied, wrapping her arms around Lissa's petite frame.

I took my coat off and threw it on the couch. I headed straight to Adrian's kitchen, rifling through the cupboards for a snack. Frowning, I moved to the fridge. Jackpot. He had a container of strawberries. Smiling devilishly, I grabbed the whole container and went back out to the living room.

I sunk down on the plush couch and reclined my side, munching on strawberries.

"Glad to see you've made yourself at home, little dhampir," Adrian said, grinning. I stuck my tongue out at him and went back to eating strawberries.

"I can't believe you're here, Viktoria. I missed you!" Lissa exclaimed, reaching over to pluck a strawberry from the container in my lap.

"I missed you too, Liss," Viktoria said, slinging an arm around Lissa's neck.

"_I_ missed you the most, Viki," Adrian said, kissing her cheek.

"Aww! You guys are adorable!" I squealed, poking them both on the nose.

They rolled their eyes. "Anyways . . . how did the appointment go? Liss wouldn't tell me anything," Adrian said, nudging Lissa. She stuck her tongue out at him.

"It went great, Adrian. Two girls and one boy," I replied. "Everyone, give me a hand," I said suddenly. They all looked at me like I was crazy, but extended a hand anyway. I placed Lissa's over the left side, Adrian's in the middle, and Viktoria's on the right. "Don't laugh," I warned them. They nodded. I started talking to my belly, and heard Adrian chuckling. I glared at him, but continued. I watched his expression change as the baby his hand was over nudged his hand.

"Holy shit!" he exclaimed, pulling his hand away. I laughed at him.

"I guess she already knows her uncle Adrian," I said with a smile.

"She?" he asked. I nodded. Gingerly, he put his hand back in the same spot. "Hey baby dhampir," he cooed, rubbing my belly. He was answered with another kick, making him break into a grin. "I guess she does know me."

"What's going on?" Lissa asked.

"Talk to him, Liss. See if he kicks," I told her.

She shrugged, then spoke. "Hi little man," she cooed. "Aunty Lissa loves you, you know."

Then, something beautiful happened. Aleksandr kicked the spot where her hand was.

"Oh my God, he actually kicked! That was the first time he's kicked!" I exclaimed.

Lissa's eyes widened. "Really?" she asked. I nodded. "Well, I feel special!"

We all laughed. "My turn!" Viktoria said. "Hey baby girl," she said quietly, rubbing my belly.

The baby kicked hard. "Jesus!" I exclaimed. "That kinda hurt, baby," I said to my tummy. She nudged my hand gently, as if to say sorry. I laughed. "Judging by my dream, that would be Annika, so the one in the middle has to be Skylar," I told everyone. I remembered that in my dream, Aleksandr had been the calm one, Annika had been the wildly active one and Skylar had been somewhere in between.

I'd told everyone of my dream—the first half, at least. I didn't want to scare anyone else.

"That's so cool that you had a dream about them!" Viktoria exclaimed.

I smiled. "I know. It's weird, but amazing."

Everyone nodded in agreement. "I can't believe that they're kicking already!" Lissa squealed.

"I can't either. I scared Dimitri to death earlier though," I said, chuckling.

"How?" Viktoria asked.

"Well, I screamed for him to come to the living room and he came running out with his stake, thinking that I was in danger!" I was actually laughing now, as were the others.

"That's hilarious!" Adrian exclaimed.

We talked for a while longer before I decided that it was time to go home. I had a headache, my back was hurting and my feet were starting to swell.

"I think I'll stay here for a bit," Viktoria said.

"Can you find your way back to the house?" I asked her.

"I'll walk her," Adrian volunteered.

I nodded. "Okay. Liss, you coming with me?" I asked. She nodded and stood up.

I held a foot up. "Ugh, look at my feet!"

"Tell Dimitri that he better give you a foot massage or else I'll beat him up!" Viktoria said with a grin.

"I'll pass the message along," I told her. I reached a hand out to Lissa so that she could help me up.

I rested a hand on the bottom of my back, groaning. "Damn, this sucks."

Lissa shot a sympathetic look at me. "It probably does. But come on, and we can get you home to lay down."

"Sounds good, princess," I said, grinning. Lissa glared at me, which was about as scary as a fluffy little bunny. "See ya later, Tori. Don't be home too late." I turned to Adrian. "See you tomorrow?" I asked. He nodded.

Lissa and I made our way slowly to the door, putting our coats on. We opened the door, and before we left, I yelled, "And no sex!"

I heard their laughter as I pulled the door closed behind me. "You're bad," Lissa told me, shaking her head in amusement.

"I know." I grinned at her through the falling snow. It looked like a winter-wonderland out here. Snow and ice coated everything, making it sparkle dimly in the light of the moon. I tightened my pink knit scarf around my neck and pulled the matching beanie from my pocket. I placed it on my head and over my ears, shielding them from the cold.

Lissa and I held on to eachother for dear life as we walked across patches of ice.

"People really need to get out here with some salt! Someone could fall and break their neck," I growled.

Lissa laughed. "Oh Rose, you always think of the grimmest things." She pushed a piece of blonde hair that tumbled into her eyes aside with a mittened hand. "Lighten up!"

I rolled my eyes. "Lissa, thinking of the grimmest outcome is part of my job."

"So _that's_ why you dhampirs are always so glum!" she joked, poking my side.

"Oh har har. Maybe it would do you some good to think like—whoa!" I suddenly went tumbling face-first into a snowbank. I felt the icy cold of it, so cold that my skin was burning. I rolled over on my back, still laying in the snowbank. "Well shit!" I exclaimed, wiping the snow off my face.

Lissa erupted into laughter, clutching her sides. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't be laughing, but it's just so darn funny!" she chortled.

I smiled angelically at her before grabbing her hand and tugging her down with me. She tumbled right into the snowbank, landing on her side.

I started laughing. "Now I see what you mean, Liss! It _is_ funny!"

Lissa grumbled something unintelligible, rolling over on her back with me.

I could feel the wetness of the snow starting to seep through the back of my coat. Great. I was going to be completely soaked. My legs were already soaked as it is.

We laid there for a few more minutes before Lissa got up. She extended her hand to help me up, which I gladly accepted. Laying on your back when you're pregnant and trying to get up sucked; you kind of flopped around helplessly like a turtle.

Still holding eachother, we finally made it back to my house. With a shaking hand, I pulled my key from my pocket to unlock the door. I pushed it open and stepped inside with Lissa, both of us kicking our boots off and throwing our wet jackets on the hooks by the door. We were shivering pretty bad when Christian and Dimitri came out to greet us. We probably looked like drowned rats, because our hair was soaked from laying in the snow.

Christian and Dimitri started laughing at us, but I held up a hand to silence them. "Not. A. Word." I said each word clearly, slowly, hoping they'd get the message to not laugh at us. They immediately sobered up.

"Where's Viktoria?" Dimitri asked.

"Hanging out with Adrian for a bit. Don't worry, I told them no sex," I said before taking off up the stairs, Lissa following behind me. We went to my room and headed straight to the dresser. I pulled some fuzzy pajama pants and long-sleeved shirts out for Lissa and I, and we split off to get changed. I gave Lissa the longest pajama pants that I had, but they'd probably still be a little too short.

I peeled off my wet clothes and pulled on my Garfield fuzzy pajama pants and one of Dimitri's shirts that had Cyrillic writing on the front. Lissa came out of the adjoining bathroom wearing my lime green fuzzy pajama bottoms that had pigs with wings and flowers all over them and a long-sleeved plain red shirt.

We headed straight to the kitchen, where we found Dimitri making some of his amazing hot chocolate for us. I wrapped my arms around him from behind for a quick hug before grabbing the elastic from my wrist and tying my wet hair up in a high ponytail.

"Do you have another elastic?" Lissa asked. I nodded and pulled another from my other wrist and handed it to her. She pulled her hair into a high ponytail as well before heading out to the living room to sit with Christian.

"I'm guessing you guys fell?" Dimitri asked.

"Face-first into a snowbank." I grimaced, remembering the cold. "Actually, I fell, and Lissa was laughing at me so I pulled her down with me and we laid there for a few minutes."

Dimitri laughed at me, a deep, throaty chuckle. "You're mean, honey."

"Hey! She was laughing at me, so she deserved it."

Dimitri just shook his head and turned back to the hot chocolate. "Did you have a good time over at Adrian's?"

I nodded. "You should have seen his face when he saw Viktoria. It was absolutely priceless!" I chortled, rubbing my belly. Which reminded me. "Oh, Lissa got Alek kicking."

"Really?"

"Yeah. It was crazy! She just started talking to him and he kicked. And holy shit, baby number three can kick!" I exclaimed, pointing to the right side of my belly. "Tori started talking to her and BAM! Hardest kick yet." I rubbed the spot lovingly, and received a small kick. "Baby number two scared the shit out of Adrian when she kicked. It was pretty funny," I told him.

He handed me two cups of hot chocolate, grabbing the other two himself. "That would be funny."

Together, we walked out to the living room. Dimitri handed Lissa and Christian the hot chocolates that he held, then I handed him one that I held. We sank down on the couch, and I curled up to him for warmth. I was still quite chilly from my fall. Noticing this, Dimitri draped a blanket from the back of the couch over the two of us.

I took a drink of my hot chocolate, feeling the warmth spread through me. I tilted my head up to look at Dimitri. "You know, you make the best hot chocolate."

He grinned. "Yeah, I know."

"So what movie are we watching?" Lissa asked.

" 'Devil.' " I replied with a grin.

Lissa paled a little, but said nothing. Christian got up to put the movie on, then settled back on the loveseat with Lissa. She curled up to him.

**(A/N: Spoilers ahead for the movie 'Devil'. Do not read if you don't want to spoil the movie.)**

The movie started. It was weird at the start, and only started getting good when they were locked in the elevator.

"Predictions, anyone?" Christian asked.

"I bet it's the old lady. It's _always_ the old lady," I replied.

"I bet it's Sarah," Lissa chimed in. "See seems a little off to me."

"I bet it's Ben. He seems kinda sketchy. Him or the guy in the suit," Christian said.

"Dimitri?" I asked, turning to him.

"I think it's Tony. There's something suspicious about him. Either him or the old lady," he replied, grinning at me.

We watched as the lights in the elevator went out, and when they turned back on, the girl named Sarah had a huge cut on her back.

"Crap. It's definitely not Sarah," Lissa said sadly.

"You never know, Liss. She could have done that to herself to make herself seem innocent," Christian said, wrapping an arm around Lissa.

"That would be smart," I admitted. I had high hopes that it was the old lady.

A little bit later, the lights in the elevator went out again. When they turned back on, the guy in the suit was dead on the floor with a shard of glass from the elevator mirror in his neck.

"Guess it's not him," Christian said grudgingly.

"Nope," I agreed.

More of the movie passed, and the lights went out yet again. When they turned back on, I was disappointed to see that the old lady was hanging in the corner of the elevator by the light.

"Damn," I muttered. "I thought for sure that it would be the old lady!"

"It's okay, Roza," Dimitri said, rubbing my arms.

At one part, one of the security guys went down to the basement to check if everything was okay down there, and he found a big wire lying in a puddle of water, causing it to short. He ended up stepping in the puddle and getting electrocuted.

Minutes later, our new fireplace starting freaking out and making noises. The fire alarm went off, and I sprung up off the couch, screaming my head off. Lissa and Christian were right behind me, freaking out as well, while Dimitri turned the fire alarm off.

"Guys, calm down. One of the bricks caught on fire, that's all," he said, laughing at us.

Cautiously, we crept back into the living room. Dimitri had pressed pause on the movie so that we wouldn't miss anything.

"Jeez. Worst thing ever that could possibly happen when you're watching this movie," I muttered, plopping down on the couch. Everyone chuckled nervously, taking their seats. Dimitri pressed play again, and the movie continued.

Back in the elevator, the lights went out again. When they turned back on, Ben was lying on the floor, his neck twisted at an unnatural angle. I winced as it brought back memories of Mason. Dimitri hugged me closer to him, but my eyes locked with Christian's, who was wincing as well. We'd probably never get over Mason's gruesome death.

Soon after, there was a big showdown in the elevator between Sarah and Tony. She ends up trying to kill him with a shard of glass, but the lights go out and she ends up on the floor, gasping for air because the shard was now in her neck.

"I knew it was Tony!" Dimitri exclaimed. But he was brought up short when the old lady rose from the ground, her eyes black.

"YES! I knew it was the old lady!" I yelled.

"But . . . but . . . how?" Christian stuttered.

I shrugged. "Beats me. But I totally knew it!"

In the movie, Tony ended up escaping death by repenting all of his sins and the old lady disappears.

**(A/N: It's okay to look now! For those of you who read that part, the whole fireplace thing actually happened when I was watching the movie with Natalee. Her dad had to come downstairs and turn the fire alarm off XD he was pretty pissed because it was the middle of the night . . . and I was totally right about who the Devil was!)**

I stretched. "That was a good movie, wasn't it?" I asked. Everyone nodded. "Wanna watch another one?"

"As long as it isn't another scary one," Lissa replied.

"I was thinking 'The Switch'." I said. They all nodded in agreement, and I got up to put the movie in. Then the doorbell pealed, and I ran out to get it.

**Adrian POV**

"I still can't believe that you're actually here, babe. It's crazy," I murmured. Viktoria and I sat curled up on my couch.

"I know. I had such a hard time not telling you that I was coming in our dreams," she replied, laying her head on my chest.

"I'll bet." I chuckled. "I'm just happy that you're here." I breathed in her familiar scent of citrus, and I was home.

"Mmm, me too."

Her being here early meant that I'd actually be able to give her her Christmas presents on Christmas, seeing as Christmas was in four days and she would be here for a week.

"I'll be right back," I told her, standing up. She nodded, and I ran to my room. I started rifling through my drawers for one of her presents. I wanted to give her one early. "Aha!" I exclaimed, finding the one that I was looking for. The small box was in a tiny bag overflowing with pink, purple and blue tissue paper. I grabbed it and left the room, holding it behind my back.

"What do you have behind your back?" Viktoria asked, trying to peer around me.

I held it up. "Early Christmas present, my dear."

Viktoria giggled. "You didn't have to get me anything, Adri."

I plopped down beside her. "But I did," I said, placing the bag in her hands.

Her breath caught in her throat. "Pink, blue, purple . . . you remembered my favorite colors?" she asked.

I nodded. "I couldn't ever forget anything about you, Viki."

Her eyes started watering. "That's so sweet," she murmured. She gently pulled the tissue paper from the bag and turned it upside down.

**Viktoria POV**

I couldn't believe that he actually remembered my favorite colors. I turned the bag upside down, and a small box tumbled out. It looked suspiciously like a ring box.

I pinched the box between two fingers, pulling it open.

I gasped. Nestled into the velvet on the inside of the box was a silver ring. Light pink, dark purple and blue stones were set into it. "Oh Adrian, it's beautiful."

"I knew you'd like it. I specifically got tourmalines because they're pink, amethysts because they're purple and sapphires because they're blue." He pulled the ring from the box and took my right hand, slipping it on the third finger. "Ah, perfect fit. It's a promise ring," he told me.

I couldn't help pulling his lips down to meet mine. He was just so sweet! "I. Love. You." I punctuated each word with a kiss.

"I love you too," he said, resting his forehead on mine. My stomach rumbled, making us both laugh.

"Airplane food isn't very filling, I guess," I said, grinning.

He stood up, pulling me with him. "Then how about we make some food? I could definitely go for some food," he suggested.

"Food sounds good to me, Adri," I replied.

We walked out to the kitchen, and Adrian started gathering the ingredients for spaghetti. Once they were all out, he plugged in his iPhone and started playing music.

"What's this song called?" I asked. I liked it; it had a nice beat.

"My favorite song of the day: The Other Side by Bruno Mars featuring Cee Lo Green and B.o.B.," he replied, grinning.

Rolling my eyes, I rolled up my sleeves. "Let's get cooking."

"Of course, m'lady."

Adrian got to work grating cheese for garlic bread, while I started on the sauce. We chatted easily as we worked, never falling into silence.

When we were both at the stove, him cooking noodles and me stirring sauce, a slower song came on.

Adrian stepped away and extended his hand. "May I have this dance?" he asked.

I giggled. "Of course you may, kind sir," I replied, taking his hand.

He pulled me close, his arms going around my waist. My hands went up to rest on his shoulders, and I leaned my head on his chest. I could hear his heartbeat as we swayed slowly from side to side.

We danced until the end of the song. Adrian's eyes shone bright green as he leaned down to kiss me gently.

"What was that song?" I asked.

"In My Veins by Andrew Belle."

"It's officially our song now," I declared. Adrian laughed, and we went back to the stove.

Soon, Adrian's small apartment was filled with the smell of garlic and tomatoes. We scooped noodles onto our plates, then drowned them in sauce. Adrian grabbed the oven mitts and pulled the garlic bread out, put it on a plate, then sat it on the table. He arranged a bunch of little votive candles in the middle of the table and dimmed the lights.

We sat down across from eachother and started eating. The food turned out perfect!

I ate until I was full, but there was still spaghetti on my plate. I saw that Adrian was done as well, and I got an idea.

I grabbed a forkful of spaghetti and flung it at him. It hit him right in the forehead, and he looked at me with a stunned expression. I smiled angelically, and watched as he grabbed a forkful of spaghetti.

"It's on!" he exclaimed throwing it at me. It landed it my hair, which ignited a food war between us. Spaghetti flew everywhere, covering everything. When I ran out of spaghetti on my plate, I jumped up and grabbed a handful of noodles and threw them at him. They flew into his hair, and we both erupted into laughter.

"Well that was fun," he commented, plucking a saucy noodle off his arm and dropping it.

"That it was, Adri. We should do it again sometime."

Adrian grimaced. "I'd rather not. Some things are only fun once."

I laughed at his disgruntled expression.

Suddenly, the doorbell rang. "That's probably Eddie or something," he said, dashing out to get the door. I stayed in the kitchen and started cleaning up the noodles from the floor and walls.

I heard Adrian's voice raise. "Oh! Aunt Tatiana, what are you doing here?" he asked frantically.

Oh shit. I'm covered in spaghetti, and the Queen is here. That's just perfect.

"Adrian, why are you covered in spaghetti?" she asked.

"Um . . . I just had a food fight."

"With whom?"

"My girlfriend," he replied.

"I was unaware that you had a girlfriend, Adrian. Who is she? I'd love to meet her."

"One moment, Auntie," Adrian said. He popped back into the kitchen. "Okay Viki, just act normal. Got it?" he asked. I nodded, plucking the spaghetti from my hair. Adrian took my hand and led me out to the living room, where Queen Tatiana sat on his couch.

"Aunt Tatiana, this is my girlfriend, Viktoria Belikov," he announced.

"It's very nice to meet you, your Majesty," I said, bowing politely.

A look of disdain crossed her face, but it was gone as quickly as it came. "It's nice to meet you too, Viktoria. Any relation to Dimitri?" she asked.

I nodded. "He's my older brother," I replied.

"I see. Adrian, could I speak with you in the other room for a moment, please?" she asked him. He nodded, and the two of them got up and walked down the hall to where I assumed Adrian's room was.

I walked out to the kitchen to finish cleaning. I was starting to feel nervous. She obviously didn't like me, judging by the look on her face.

I realized that I could hear their voices from the kitchen.

"Adrian, what is with you and dhampirs? Why can't you find a nice royal girl to date?"

I felt my heart sink. She hated me already. I was angry too. So what if I'm a dhampir? It doesn't make me less of a person!

"Auntie, I don't want a royal girl. They only like me for my name and my money. Viktoria likes me for me. Aunt Tatiana . . . I love her. And nothing you say or do can change that."

I held my breath as I waited for her response. When it came, my heart clenched.

"You disgust me, Adrian. I don't know where we went wrong with you."

I watched as Tatiana walked by the kitchen quickly and walked out the door. When Adrian came back in the room, the tears I'd been holding back fell.

"You heard," he said simply.

Unable to speak, I nodded and brushed past him. I needed to get out, get back to Rose and Dimitri's. I grabbed my coat and ran from his house, not even bothering to pull it on.

I heard Adrian calling my name, but I didn't stop. I ran all the way back to the house, tears streaming down my face.

I was freezing by the time the door opened. Rose took one look at my face before pulling me inside and wrapping her arms around me. I cried into her shoulder, my whole body shaking.

"Dimitri!" she called. He came running out. "Make her some hot chocolate. I'm taking her to her room."

I saw his worried expression before he nodded and went to the kitchen.

Rose led me down a hallway and stopped at the last door on the right. She opened it and pulled me to the bed, where I collapsed in a shivering heap.

Rose cracked her knuckles. "Okay, what did he do? I'll kick his ass," she growled.

I shook my head. "Not Adrian."

Rose's expression turned puzzled. "Then who—Tatiana."

I sniffled. "How did you know?" I asked.

"Because she's the biggest bitch I've ever met. Trust me, I've been there before," she replied, smoothing my hair.

"She hates me, Ro. Absolutely hates me." A fresh torrent of tears fell down my face.

Rose hugged me tightly. "Do you want to talk about it?" she asked.

I nodded. "She popped over unexpectedly. When Adrian introduced me to her, she gave me a dirty look. She went to talk to Adrian in his room, and I waited in the kitchen. I could hear their conversation, and . . . she told Adrian that he disgusts her because he's dating me, a dhampir."

Rose went absolutely red with rage. "_I can't believe she said that!_" she yelled. "She's such a fucking bitch! Don't pay any attention to her, Tori."

"Don't worry; I plan to steer clear of her," I replied. I sniffled again, and Rose pulled something off my shoulder. A spaghetti noodle.

"Do I even want to ask?"

I giggled. "Adrian and I had a food fight."

Rose shook her head. "Why don't you get changed? You can come watch a movie with us."

I nodded. I got up and grabbed some pajamas from my suitcase, and Rose turned around as I got changed.

When I was all settled, Rose helped me wash my hair in the tub of the adjoining bathroom. She washed all of the spaghetti out, then handed me a towel. I rubbed my head rapidly with it, getting my hair as dry as I could. I then brushed it out, and Rose handed me an elastic to put it in a ponytail.

There was a knock at the door before Dimitri timidly poked his head in. He carried a steaming mug of hot chocolate, which I gladly accepted.

"You okay, Vika?" he asked cautiously.

I nodded. "I'm fine."

"What happened?"

"Queen Bitch decided to pay them a visit. She told Adrian that he disgusted her because he loved a dhampir," Rose explained through clenched teeth.

I watched as Dimitri's fists clenched and unclenched. He took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. "She had no business saying that," he said quietly. You could tell how angry he was, but he didn't show it.

Rose sighed. "We should go out to the living room. Lissa and Christian are probably wondering what's going on."

Dimitri and I nodded. We all walked out together.

"Rose, can I borrow your cell phone? I should probably call Adrian. I kinda ran out on him," I said, frowning.

She pulled her phone from her bra, making me laugh. She and Dimitri went to sit down, but I went out to the kitchen so that I could call Adrian. I went through her contacts until I found him, then pressed call.

As I waited for him to pick up, I took a drink of my hot chocolate. Dimitri always made it the best, and it always made me feel better.

"Hello?" Adrian said, his voice dull and sad sounding.

"Hey," I whispered.

"Viktoria! Oh my God, I'm so sorry!" he exclaimed.

"It wasn't your fault, Adrian. No need to apologize." I bit my lip. "Why don't you come over here? We're about to watch a movie, I guess."

"I'll be right over."

"Okay. Bye, Adri."

"See ya in a few, Viki."

I pressed the end button and walked out to the living room to sit beside Rose. "Adrian's coming over," I informed everyone.

"I can't believe Queen Bitch said that to you, Vik. God, I would absolutely _love _to light her on fire," Christian growled.

"Yeah, Vik. She was _way_ out of line," Lissa added. I handed Rose her phone, and she texted someone.

I shrugged. "There's nothing I can do about it. She may be a mega-bitch, but she's also the queen."

"Some things are so unfair!" Rose exclaimed. Her phone buzzed, and she looked down. "By the way, Eddie and Mia are coming over."

The doorbell rang. "I'll get it; it's probably Adrian," I said, jumping up off the couch.I ran to the door and opened it, revealing Adrian in a dark brown pea coat and snowflakes in his hair.

He stepped in and hugged me tightly, pulling back only to kiss me. I tasted alcohol on his breath, and I pulled away, giving him a disapproving look. "Were you drinking?" I asked.

He smiled sheepishly. "Just a little. Don't worry, I'm not drunk. I had one glass of vodka." Then he sighed. "I wish you hadn't heard her. She can be a real bitch. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. What's done is done, Adrian. We can't change the past."

He shrugged his coat off, hung it on a hook, then closed the door. He took his boots off, and we walked out to the living room to sit down on the couch with Dimitri and Rose.

We all chatted casually as we waited for Eddie and Mia to arrive. When they did, they occupied the other loveseat, and we started the movie.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

**Rose POV**

After the movie, Dimitri went out to the send to bring in the Christmas tree that we'd bought the day before. Everyone was going to help us decorate it tonight. We'd all be making a special ornament to hang on the tree as well. For those, I bought a box of clear ornaments and glitter glue.

While Dimitri and Christian secured the tree, the rest of us started on our ornaments.

On mine, I drew two stick figures in silver glitter glue. I then used pink to make a dress on one, and blue and green to make pants and a shirt on the other one. I used purple to make long hair on me, and red to make hair on Dimitri. I added a gold cowboy hat on Dimitri, then I wrote "Rose Hearts Dimitri" underneath in pink. I set it to dry and started making ornaments for the triplets. For Annika's, I wrote her name in pink and made a little gold princess crown with pink 'jewels'. For Skylar's, I wrote her name in purple and made a little blue flower with a long green stem. For Aleksandr's, I wrote his name in blue and made a little orange cowboy hat.

"Yours are all adorable, Rose!" Lissa squealed. I looked at hers, and saw that she'd written her name in pink cursive writing and made multicolored firework-looking things all over it.

"I love yours, Liss," I said.

Dimitri was beside me, concentrating hard on what he was doing. I don't think he noticed, but his tongue was sticking out. To keep myself from laughing, I went around to look at everyone else's.

Christian's had his name written in blue with little red and orange flames all over it. Typical.

Adrian's was a little stick man holding a bottle of vodka. His name was written in green at the top, and at the bottom, it said "Happy Holidays!" I shook my head at him, and he grinned at me.

Viktoria's had her name written in purple. The writing was curly and pretty, and there were red hearts all over it.

Mia's had her name in blue. She drew a little sliver snowman on hers, as well as little Christmas presents.

Eddie's was by far the most epic. His name was written in orange, and he drew a little stick man riding a stick horse on his. I burst out laughing and high-fived him.

When I got back to Dimitri's, he was all done. There were small hearts everywhere, and written in the middle was his name in silver and mine in purple. It also said "Merry Christmas" in red and green lettering. The last thing he did was write the names of each of the babies, with a heart beside each one.

"Aww, Dimi! That's so cute!" I exclaimed.

"I like yours too. Especially the little cowboy hat," he replied, poking my nose. I rolled my eyes.

"While these dry, we can get the other decorations up. Dimitri, Adrian, you two are on light duty," I said. They nodded, and ran out to start opening up the packages of lights. "Eddie, Christian, you two can start on the outside lights."

They both groaned, but went to grab the outdoor lights and their jackets. They also grabbed the big stapler, and I told them that the ladder was in the shed.

I turned to Lissa and Mia. "You two can start getting the ornaments ready to put on the tree. Tell Adrian and Dimitri that they can help the two of you when they get the lights on."

They nodded and headed to the living room.

"What are we gonna do?" Viktoria asked me.

I grinned. "We get to do the fun stuff. We're making cupcakes, cookies and Jello."

Viktoria grinned back. "Sweet!" she exclaimed.

We went to the kitchen and grabbed all of the ingredients. Viktoria started on the Jello, while I started on the shortbread cookies. Once I had everything mixed together, I cut them into Christmas shapes, things like candy canes, present boxes and snowmen. Once they were in the oven baking and the Jello was in the fridge, I started making cupcakes and Viktoria started making icing. We were going with chocolate cupcakes and vanilla icing.

Viktoria ladled the mix into a cupcake pan while I took the shortbread cookies out of the oven. Once she finished, she stuck the cupcakes in.

We waited for the cookies to cool before icing them. Once they were iced, we used sprinkles and candies to decorate them. By the time we finished that, the cupcakes were done. Viktoria took them out, and we waited a few minutes before icing and decorating them.

Eddie and Christian came in from outside, rosy-cheeked and shivering.

"I stapled my finger," Eddie announced, showing us his bleeding finger.

I grabbed a cloth from one of the drawers and ran over to wrap it around his finger. "Dammit Eddie, how did you manage that one?" I asked, tying the cloth.

He shrugged. "I was stapling the last part, and Christian accidentally made the ladder move. The staple ended up going through my finger. I still stapled the lights, though. There all up there good," he told me.

"Thank you, guys. Now go sit down, take your jackets off and we'll bring you some sweets," I said, ushering them out to the living room.

Viktoria and I put the cookies and cupcakes on two platters and carried them to the living room. When everyone saw the sweets, they all jumped up. Everyone took a cookie and a cupcake and sat back down.

I looked at the tree. It was half done at this point, and already looking great. Adrian and Dimitri had hung the icicle lights in the windows, and they looked beautiful. Mia was fussing over Eddie's finger, Lissa and Christian were making out, and Viktoria and Adrian sat in front of the fireplace shoving food in eachother's faces. Dimitri wrapped his arms around me, and I laid my head back against his chest. Our big family together for the holidays. No matter how crazy and dysfunctional, I wouldn't have them any other way.

Once everyone was done their treats (and Viktoria and Adrian wiped the icing off their faces) we finished decorating the tree. Our homemade ornaments had dried, so we hung them close to the top. Dimitri put the tree topper on the tree, which was a beautiful crystal snowflake that had sparkles all over it.

Together, we all admired our work. We decided to settle down for one more movie. We all decided on 'The Grinch Who Stole Christmas', the one with Jim Carrey.

Halfway through the movie, I got up to check on the Jello. It was done, so I called everyone out to get some. Viktoria had made three giant bowls of cherry and three giant bowls of lime for Christmas colors. I grabbed the whipping cream from the fridge for anyone who wanted it.

I grabbed myself a big bowl of cherry Jello, pouring whipping cream all over the top of it. Dimitri got both lime and cherry, without whipping cream. Lissa got lime with whipping cream, and Christian got cherry with whipping cream. Viktoria and Adrian both got both flavors with whipping cream, Mia got cherry without and Eddie got lime without.

We all went back into the living room and continued the movie, eating our Jello in happy silence.

When the movie was over, we all got up and took our dishes to the sink. It was late, so everyone left.

Just as Dimitri, Viktoria and I were heading to bed, someone started pounding on the door and ringing the doorbell.

I sighed. "I'll get it."

I went and opened the door, revealing a very frantic looking Mom. "Rose, you're never going to believe this," she said breathlessly.

"What?" I asked. I wanted to know what had happened to make my mother look like this.

"Someone murdered Queen Tatiana!" she exclaimed.

**_Haha oooh! The old bitch is dead!_**

**_You guys are probably going to hate me, but I'm kinda stuck with this story :S I'm not even halfway through the next chapter, and I don't know what else to write...oh well, I'll come up with something. I'll try not to keep you guys waiting too long, because you all deserve so much better than that. You're all so good to me, and I hate disappointing you guys!_**

**_Well, until next time, because my 'o' button is sticking, and it's bugging me._**

**_Toodles!_**

**_-Sarah_**


	29. Chapter 30

_**A/N: Hey guys! Sorry about the wait. I had a hard time getting back into the rhythm of writing this story :P But I'm back now, and things are moving quite smoothly :D chapters are going to be shorter, though. I think it's better to have shorter chapters and update faster, rather than longer chapters and update slower :)**_

_**One little thing: I made a mistake with my math calculation in chapter 23. Rose isn't 17 weeks pregnant, she's really around 24 or 25. Let's just go with 25. I obviously couldn't do math right when I posted chapter 23...see, I **_**could_go back and change it, but I'm really too lazy. So, disregard the whole "17 weeks pregnant" and remember that it's actually "25 weeks pregnant"._**

**_On with the chapter!_**

**_~Sarah~_**

**CHAPTER **Twenty-Five

"_Someone murdered Queen Tatiana!" she exclaimed._

My eyes widened. "What?" Maybe I hadn't heard her clearly.

"Are you deaf? I said that someone murdered Queen Tatiana!" she shouted.

Dimitri and Viktoria came running out. "What?" they asked at the same time.

"Dear God, are you all deaf? The. Queen. Was. Murdered. M-U-R-D-E-R-E-D!"

"Holy shit! When?" I asked.

"About two hours ago. It's pretty bad around here . . ." She gestured around her.

My hand flew to my mouth. Sure, Tatiana had been a bitch, but she didn't deserve to die.

"How?" Viktoria asked quietly.

Mom grimaced. "She . . . she was staked."

I winced. "That's horrible," I murmured.

Viktoria gasped. "Adrian! I have to get to him!" she exclaimed, pushing past everyone.

"But you'll freeze!" I called after her, but she was already gone. "Dammit! She's only wearing slippers and pyjamas!" I said, groaning. I was about to put my shoes on, but Dimitri's hand on my shoulder stopped me.

"Let her go," he said softly. "Adrian needs her now."

I sighed. "You're right." I turned back to my mother. "Do they have any leads?" I asked.

She shook her head morosely. "No one. It's going to be hell around here for a while." She rubbed her temples as if she had a headache. Which, she probably did.

I shot her a sympathetic look. "Do you want some ibuprofen?" I asked her, wrapping an arm around her.

"Ibuprofen would be nice," she replied. The three of us walked out to the kitchen, where I grabbed a cupcake and started eating it. Mom eyed me weirdly. "Isn't it a little late for cupcakes?" she asked.

I shrugged. "I'm pregnant. What do you expect?" I held another one out to her. "Want one?"

She shook her head. "No thanks, honey," she said tiredly, downing the ibuprofen and water she'd gotten.

After finishing my cupcake, I grabbed a cookie and ate that too.

Mom looked around, belatedly noticing the decorations. "You guys decorated?" she asked.

I nodded. "All of us either baked or decorated. We watched 'The Grinch Who Stole Christmas' after that."

"It looks nice," she said, putting her glass in the sink. She sighed. "I'd better get back to Abe. We'll talk more in the morning, okay?"

Dimitri and I nodded. I gave my mother a hug, manoeuvring around my belly. Which reminded me. Pulling away, I spoke. "By the way . . . you have two granddaughters and a grandson," I said, grinning.

A radiant smile pulled up the corners of my mother's lips. I couldn't help but notice how much younger she looked when she smiled, how pretty she was. "I'll be sure to pass that one on to your father," she replied, pulling me in for another quick hug.

Dimitri and I walked her to the door. "Abe and I will be over again soon," she assured me.

I nodded. "Okay. Bye, Mom."

"Goodbye, sweetie. Bye, Dimitri," she nodded in his direction.

"Goodbye, Janine," replied Dimitri.

We shut the door behind her and made our way to the living room to wait for Viktoria to come back.

Dimitri put more logs into the fire before sitting next to me on the couch. We turned no lights on; we simply sat by the light of the fire.

I felt my eyelids growing heavy. Dimitri stroked my hair in a steady rhythm, furthering my drowsiness.

"Sleep, Roza," was the last thing I heard before I dozed off.

**Viktoria POV**

I ran through the snow, the wind chilling me to the bone. _Damn,_ I thought. _I should have at least grabbed a jacket, or maybe even some shoes!_

Shaking my head, I hurried through the snow, not stopping until I got to Adrian's apartment.

When I got there, I knocked on the door. "Adrian? It's me," I called, hoping he'd hear me.

Moments later, the door opened to a haggard-looking Adrian. "Viktoria," he breathed. He ushered me inside and locked the door.

When we got to the living room, he collapsed in a heap on the couch, his body shaking. I sat beside him, pulling his head on to my lap and stroking his hair to try to console him.

We sat like that until his shaking ceased. He looked up at me with a tear-streaked face. "You're soaked," he said hoarsely.

"I forgot to grab a jacket," I admitted, shivering a little.

Adrian wiped at his eyes. Sniffing, he got up, extending his hand to me. I was about to ask him what he was doing, but he just shook his head and led me to his bedroom.

He started digging through his drawers. Satisfied, he pulled out a t-shirt and some boxers. "Change into these," he told me.

Nodding, I grabbed them from his outstretched hand and made my way to the bathroom to change. I was grateful for warm, dry clothes, though there wasn't much I could do for my hair. I just re-did the ponytail and left the bathroom, balling my wet clothes up.

Silently, Adrian took my clothes and left the room, coming back moments later. "I put them in the dryer," he explained. I nodded.

He walked up and wrapped his arms around my waist. "Please stay with me tonight. I don't think I can take being alone," he whispered brokenly.

"Of course. I wouldn't even think about leaving you alone when you need me so much." I looked around. "Where's your phone?" I asked softly. "I need to call and tell Rose and Dimitri that I'm not coming home."

He took one arm from my waist and pulled his iPhone from his pocket. He handed it to me, and I dialled the number for Rose and Dimitri's house. It rang a few times before Dimitri picked up.

"Hello?" he said, sounding tired.

"It's me," I said softly. "I'm staying with Adrian tonight. He needs me."

"Okay, I understand. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Bye."

"Bye, Vika."

I ended the call and handed Adrian his phone. He slipped it into his pocket and led me to the bed.

I laid my head on his chest and held his hand. "Are you okay, Adri?" I asked, looking up to gaze at him.

He shook his head. "I . . . I just don't understand. Who could do that? Why? _Why?_" His voice was so agonized_, _and it hurt me to see him so hurt. It was like I could physically feel his pain.

"I don't know, Adrian. But they _will_ be found and punished for it."

My words must have reassured him, because he'd calmed down.

Suddenly, he attacked my lips with great intensity. It was dizzying, the way he kissed me. I couldn't understand why, but I didn't want to stop. He needed me, and I'd be there for him, no matter what.

My arms snaked around his neck, hands gripping his hair. His tongue slid across my lip, and my mouth quickly opened. He moaned quietly when our tongues connected. He rolled so that he hovered over me, his weight on his legs as his arms trailed up and down my sides, making me shiver.

He pulled away briefly, his eyes locking with mine. "I love you, Viktoria Belikova. You're so beautiful . . . even more so with my clothes on," he whispered, leaning his head against mine.

I sat up to whisper in his ear. "What about with them off?" I asked, trailing my hands down his chest.

Slowly, his eyes never leaving mine, he eased my—his—shirt up and over my head, tossing it to the side. His eyes glazed over as they trailed down my body, clad in only a pink bra and his silk boxers.

I reached out and grabbed the hem of his t-shirt, edging it up until I pulled it over his head. I admired his defined abs and perfect chest, running my hands all over it.

He growled and pinned me to the bed, his lips on mine once more. He began trailing kisses down my jaw, neck and collarbone, sucking and nipping my skin occasionally.

"I love you," he whispered, sliding my boxers off and leaving me only in underwear.

"I love you too," I replied quietly, slipping his pyjama bottoms off.

**Rose POV**

I woke up the next morning in my bed, Dimitri stroking my cheek.

"Good morning, beautiful," he said, smiling at me.

"Hey," I croaked, my voice thick with sleep. "How did I get up here?" I asked.

"I carried you up after you fell asleep on the couch. Vika stayed at Adrian's last night because he needed her," he explained.

"Oh. Okay," I replied, sitting up. "How about we go make some breakfast? I'm starved," I joked.

He pecked me on the lips. "Sure, Roza."

I got out of bed and pulled my robe on. Together, Dimitri and I made our way down to the kitchen.

"Sit down, I'll make you something," he said, stroking my cheekbone with his thumb.

I nodded, plopping down in one of the chairs at the breakfast bar. I watched as he expertly made pancakes, cooking them to golden perfection.

He set down a plate in front of me. Four pancakes were neatly stacked atop it. He then placed some maple syrup and butter beside my plate, along with a butter knife. Grabbing a plate of his own, he sat beside me, and we started eating.

When we finished, we heard the door open.

Just as Dimitri was grabbing for his stake, a soft voice called out, "It's us."

Dimitri exhaled. It was just Viktoria and Adrian.

"We're in the kitchen," I said, loud enough for them to hear me.

They walked in seconds later, holding hands. Adrian's eyes were red and bloodshot; he looked like he hadn't slept a wink. Viktoria looked almost as bad, but she was radiating positive energy. There was something electric about her.

I stood up from my stool and ran over to Adrian. Completely disregarding my sticky hands, I threw my arms around his neck and hugged him tight. I felt it when he began to shake, so I hugged him tighter and held him as his tears fell.

"Oh, Adrian," I said, brushing his hair back from his forehead. "How are you doing?"

He sighed. "Better than last night. I really just want to find out who did this," he replied, wiping at his eyes.

"I know." I felt bad for him. Even though Tatiana had been a bitch, she was still his great aunt, and he'd loved her. And for her to have died in such a horrible way must have really hurt.

"Do the two of you want some pancakes?" Dimitri asked softly.

"I do," Viktoria replied.

"None for me, thanks," said Adrian. Viktoria gave him a sharp look, and he sighed. "One," he muttered in defeat. "Just one."

"How many for you, Vika?" asked Dimitri, who was sliding a pancake onto a plate for Adrian.

"Three."

"God, Vik, you're turning into me!" I exclaimed, grinning. She rolled her eyes and sat on a stool, pulling Adrian with her. I just kept grinning.

Dimitri turned to hand Viktoria and Adrian their plates, then spoke to me. "What time are you supposed to go shopping with Lissa?"

I looked at the clock on the stove. 10:00 pm. "Damn! I have to get in the shower _now._ Liss is gonna kill me . . ." I said hurriedly before rushing upstairs, grabbing some clothes, and running into the bathroom to shower.

I finished showering as quickly as I could, got dressed, then ran back downstairs. I grabbed my coat and my boots, pecked Dimitri on the cheek, then hurried out the door.

Lissa was just coming up the walkway when I closed the door behind me. "You're late," she said in greeting, adjusting her earmuffs.

"Sorry. I didn't realize what time it was when I got up, and then I had some pancakes, and Adrian and Tori came over . . ."

Lissa's face turned solemn. "How's he holding up?"

"He doesn't look good at all. It must be really hard on him, losing her. He really loved her, even if she was a moody old bitch." Lissa smacked my arm, but I continued. "Dying the way she did must have been horrible . . . I wonder who did it?" I mused, pulling my mittens on.

"I don't know, but what I do know is that I don't feel safe here. If someone could get into her heavily guarded room and stake her, think of how easily someone could get into our homes!" she exclaimed.

I put an arm around her. "I'd never let anything happen to you, Liss."

She gestured to my inflated stomach. "There isn't much you'd be able to do, Rose. You can't risk hurting the babies."

"Well, as long as you're with Eddie or Chris, you'll be fine. But, hey, even pregnant, I bet I could still kick some major ass," I said, grinning.

Lissa rolled her eyes. "Just keep walking."

We arrived at the shopping area of Court a few minutes later. We went into a few clothing stores, where both Lissa and I bought some clothes, though mine were from the maternity section.

Next, we headed off to buy some paint for the babies' room. It took a while, but we finally decided on light green with dark brown.

Our last stop was a store that sold everything baby. We wanted to start picking out how we would decorate the room.

"Oh Rose! You have to get this!" Lissa said excitedly, pointing to a giant plush giraffe. "It could go right in a corner of the room!"

I grinned. "It is really cute . . . but today, we're only here to look," I reminded her.

We headed off into the section of the store that sold baby clothing. I couldn't help smiling at all the tiny clothes and shoes.

Suddenly, Lissa squealed and ran over to a rack. "Oh. My. God. Rose, look at these little dresses! And the little corduroy pants . . . you have to buy some baby clothes. I'm not letting you leave this store with nothing," she told me, and I could feel that she meant it.

I laughed. "Okay, Liss."

Satisfied, she smiled. She turned back to the baby clothes. "Okay, so they're going to be too little for those, so we'll need some onesies . . ." I paid no attention to what she was saying, because she was mostly talking to herself. I just looked around the store, my thoughts on the three little babies that I couldn't wait to meet. I rubbed my belly lovingly, earning a few kicks.

I wandered over to where the furniture was, and my breath caught in my throat. Just ahead of me, I spotted a beautiful wooden rocking chair. It was dark brown, and had white cushions on it. The thing is, I could see myself sitting in it, rocking a baby to sleep. I knew that I had to have it.

I walked over to the sales clerk. "Excuse me, but could you tell me how much that chair is?" I asked, pointing to the chair.

"Sure," she said, grabbing one of those portable price scanner things. We walked over and she scanned the barcode, then examined the screen on the scanner. "It's one-hundred and fifty dollars."

My eyes widened. _One__-hundred__ and fifty__ dollars for a chair?_ I asked myself. I had the money, but it seemed like such a waste . . .

. . . but I had to have it. It would look so perfect.

"I'll take it," I told her. "Would I be able to have it delivered later on?" I asked.

"Of course, but there's a small fee," she warned.

"That's fine," I replied with a smile. "If it's alright, I'm going to do a little more shopping before I pay for anything."

The lady smiled. "Take your time, Miss."

I walked back to the clothing section, where I found Lissa with an armful of baby clothes. I smiled and shook my head. I grabbed a basket, and she gratefully dumped them all in.

"Did you find anything?" Lissa asked.

I grinned. "Oh yeah. Now, let's go look at cribs!" I replied enthusiastically. Lissa clapped her hands happily, and we took off.

~VA~

Two hours and almost eight-hundred dollars later, we got back to the house. I was eager to show Dimitri all of the stuff I'd bought.

"You know what?" I asked Lissa as we walked up the walkway.

"What?"

"I really need to thank Abe for the credit cards."

Lissa burst out laughing, and nearly dropped the bag she carried. I unlocked the door quickly so we could get inside before she dropped the can of paint she held.

Dimitri greeted me with a kiss, and then he took both cans of paint. "What colors did you two get?" he asked.

"Light green and dark brown," I replied. "We were thinking of doing patterns on the walls, like, one wall with stripes, another with dots, then inverse the colors on the other two walls."

"Sounds good to me, Roza." He eyed our shopping bags. "What else did the two of you buy?" he asked.

Grabbing him by the arm, I pulled him into the living room and sat on the couch. Lissa tossed me a bag, and I began pulling baby clothes out.

"We couldn't resist, Dimi," I said, grinning. I pulled out a little blue onesie that said "My Daddy Kicks Butt." "We have two more for the girls," I explained.

The corners of Dimitri's mouth turned up in a smile. I could tell he liked it.

Lissa and I showed him all of the little outfits we'd bought, and his eyes sparkled. I think that the clothes made it even more real for him, as they had for me.

There was a knock at our door, and Dimitri grabbed for his stake. I rolled my eyes. "Dimitri, it's just the delivery guys."

His eyebrow shot up. "Delivery guys?" he asked.

"Well, I might have bought some furniture . . ."

He shook his head in amusement. "You shouldn't be allowed to go anywhere with a credit card. It's highly dangerous, it seems."

I stuck my tongue out at him before going to open the door. Sure enough, it was the delivery guys. I signed the paper on the clipboard, swiped my credit card on the machine they provided, then stood back as they brought the boxes in. Dimitri went out and helped, looking amazed at everything I'd bought in such a short time.

Once all of the boxes were in and the delivery people had left, Dimitri looked around him at all of the boxes. "What did you buy?" he asked incredulously.

I ticked everything off on my fingers. "Three cribs, a changing table, a rocking chair, a giant giraffe"—I grinned at Lissa—"three car seats, and a stroller for three."

He shook his head in amazement. "I really need to start going with you to keep you in check," he said, grinning.

I grinned. "Yeah, whatever. Now, go put on something old, because it's time to paint."

_**Did you guys like it? Like I said, shorter than other chapters :P the next one should be up soon, though :)**_

_**So, Tori and Adrian got a little hot and heavy...;) I think they're just sooooo adorable together!**_

_**Did you guys like the shopping part? I did :D**_

_**Next up: The rest of Christmas Eve. and then Christmas :D :D :D**_

_**Review, please! They make my day just a little bit brighter :) and I really need a brighter day today...it's my Nan's birthday, which is hard for all of us at my house since she died a few years ago. She'd be turning 90 today.**_

_**~I Heart Herondale Boys~**_


	30. Chapter 31

_**A/N: Here we go, chapter 26 :D I really like this chapter!**_

_**~I Heart Herondale Boys~**_

**CHAPTER **Twenty-Six

Two hours later, we'd finished with the first coat of paint. Lissa and Dimitri soon shooed me out, reminding me that the fumes weren't good for the babies.

I made my way out to the kitchen and grabbed a bowl of Cheerios. I didn't bother with milk, because I liked them better dry.

I went to sit on the couch and flipped the TV on. I rubbed my belly absent-mindedly as I ate, earning a few kicks.

I accidentally dropped a Cheerio on my stomach, and as I was about to grab it, it popped up. I burst out laughing, unable to stop. The baby had kicked where the Cheerio had fallen, making it bounce up.

I was gasping for breath from laughing so hard when Lissa and Dimitri ran out.

"What's so funny?" Lissa asked.

Instead of answering, I placed the Cheerio back on my tummy and waited. Sure enough, it flew into the air, starting a whole new round of laughter from me. Dimitri and Lissa began laughing with me, and I rubbed my belly lovingly.

I felt a flutter, so I pulled my shirt off to reveal my belly. What I saw was funnier than the Cheerio. I could actually see one of my babies turning over, and the sight of my skin moving was too much. It was a wonder I didn't roll off the couch from laughing so much, really.

Dimitri and Lissa came over to lay their hands on my belly and began talking to the babies, earning kicks galore. One hit a rib, and I winced.

"Damn, they kick hard. I think they might have broken a rib," I joked, but Dimitri didn't think I was kidding.

"Are you okay? Does it hurt?" he asked frantically, his hand going for my ribcage to feel the damage.

I laughed. "Dimitri, I was exaggerating."

He breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank God. You get injured way too much, Roza."

I sighed. "I know. I should carry a sign that says: 'CAUTION: Danger Magnet'."

"I'll get right on making you one, Rose," Lissa said with a grin. "Nice pink letters and glitter."

"No thanks, Liss. I'm good without it."

Suddenly, Dimitri's phone rang. "Belikov," he said, sounding professional.

I couldn't hear the other side of the conversation, but I gathered that Dimitri had to go to the airstrip to meet someone. I couldn't tell who, but from Dimitri's smile, I guessed it was someone he knew.

He pressed 'end', then grinned at me. "Get your coat and your boots. We have to go to the airstrip."

"Who's there?" I asked curiously.

"You'll see. I know you'll be glad to see her." He turned to Lissa too. "You coming?"

"Sure," she replied.

With that, we all got our coats and boots, and Dimitri and I tucked our stakes in our pockets.

We made our way quietly to the airstrip and waited a few minutes for the plane door to open. When it did, and I saw who walked out, I couldn't help but grin.

"Alberta!" I called.

She smiled in that fierce yet motherly way of hers. "Hello, Rose, Dimitri, Lissa."

Heedless of any ice patches, I ran over to Alberta, hugging her as tightly as I could. I'd really missed her in the past six months.

"What are you doing here?" I asked.

"I come here every Christmas to see my son and daughter," she replied.

This shocked me. "You have kids?"

She laughed and nodded. "Jeremy is twenty-eight and Jemma is thirty-two."

"Wow . . . I never would have known!" I exclaimed, grinning.

"It's really nice to see you again, Guardian Petrov," Lissa said warmly.

Alberta waved her hand dismissively. "Call me Alberta. You've known me for years, Lissa."

Lissa smiled. "Alberta. Got it."

"Do you want us to walk you to your room?" Dimitri asked.

"Sure, company while I walk would be nice."

I turned to start walking, and Alberta gasped. I eyed her weirdly, then remembered that she didn't know I was pregnant, and it was hard to tell in this jacket when you were looking at me straight-on.

"Surprised?" I asked, amused.

"Well, yes! I mean, I know you're with Dimitri, so I never even considered . . ." she trailed off, looking between us.

"The babies are mine. Don't ask us how, because we have no idea," Dimitri told her, grinning.

"Babies? Plural, as in, more than one?" Alberta asked, shocked.

"Triplets," I replied. "Two girls and a boy."

"Wow . . . I'm happy for the two of you," she said, and I knew her words were genuine.

"Thank you," Dimitri said warmly.

I rested my left hand on my belly, and Alberta gasped again.

"Are you two getting married?" she asked, stupefied.

I glanced down at my hand, realizing my ring was visible. "Oh. Yeah."

"You two don't waste any time, do you?" Her tone was amused as she looked at us, one eyebrow raised. Damn. She could do it too!

"Not really, no," I replied, laughing.

We began walking after that, still talking about all of the news.

"So, do you two know what you're naming them?" Alberta asked.

"Well, the girls are Annika Viktoria and Skylar Vasilisa, and our boy is Aleksandr Mason," I replied.

Alberta's face turned solemn when I said the last name. "They're all beautiful," she told us.

"Thanks," I said.

We walked her to guest housing, making her promise to visit before she left. We gave her our address so that she knew where to find us, and she smiled warmly at us before going in her room.

We made it back to the house moments later. I was _so_ tired from the walk, and I sunk down in the couch immediately.

I fell asleep just as Dimitri was pulling a blanket over me.

**Viktoria POV**

I spent most of the day with Adrian at his apartment. He looked as if he felt lighter, like he was slowly accepting the death of his great-aunt.

My mind wandered to last night while I waited for Adrian to get out of the shower.

_Flashback_

"_I love you," he whispered, sliding my boxers off and leaving me only in underwear._

"_I love you too," I replied quietly, slipping his pyjama bottoms off._

_His lips trailed down to my breasts, and I shuddered. "I . . . I've never done anything like this before," I said hesitantly._

_He looked up into my eyes and kissed my lips softly. "We don't have to if you don't want to yet, Viktoria. I respect you, and if you want to wait, that's fine with me."_

_I nodded slowly. "Thank you. I mean, I want to be with you . . . that way"—I blushed—"but not under these conditions, when you're so filled with grief. I want it to be special."_

_I received a small smile from him. "Your wish is my command."_

_End Flashback_

We'd fallen asleep shortly after that. I knew that I'd made the right decision in stopping when I did. I didn't want our first time to be grief-fueled.

Adrian emerged shortly from the shower, clad only in a towel. I swear I almost drooled.

_He's still grieving,_ I reminded myself.

_Damn you, grief._

**Rose POV**

I woke up some time later with a strong urge to puke. It took a few seconds for me to realize that it wasn't me, it was Lissa.

I ripped the blanket off and ran to the bathroom. I threw open the door, finding Lissa bent over the toilet.

I grabbed her hair and rubbed her back until she stopped puking.

She sat against the wall and groaned. "That was gross."

I chuckled. "When isn't puking gross?"

She rolled her eyes at me.

"Are you okay?" I asked. I could feel that she was from the bond, but I wanted her to confirm it out loud.

"Yeah. . . . It came on so fast, and now it's just gone!" she exclaimed.

My eyes widened, and I saw hers widen as well when she caught up with my train of thought.

"Rose, you don't think . . ." She trailed off, swallowing convulsively. "You don't think I'm . . . pregnant, do you?"

"Well . . . when did you have your last period?" I asked.

I listened to her thoughts as she counted once, twice, three times . . . and there was no mistaking it.

"Oh God, I'm late! I didn't even realize . . ."

I could feel she was about to freak out. "Calm down, Liss. We won't know for sure until you take a test," I said calmly.

She nodded. "Yeah . . . a test . . ."

I pulled her up gently. We left the bathroom, and I yelled to Dimitri that we were going to the store quickly. Without waiting for his response, we had our coats and boots on and were out the door.

We walked to the drug store in silence, but Lissa's thoughts were a churning mess. I was starting to feel nauseated from them.

"Liss, calm your thoughts down. You're making me nauseous."

"Sorry," she said quietly. "It's just so crazy, Rose. I mean, what will Christian think?"

I grinned. "Sparky will be over the moon, Lissa. Trust me."

She nodded, and we walked into the drugstore. She quickly bought the test and we hurried back to my house so that she could take it.

I waited outside the door for her to let me in. When she quietly called for me, I opened the door to find her pacing. The test was on the counter.

"What if it's positive?" she asked quietly.

"Then you're having a baby. Oh my God, we could be pregnancy buddies!" I exclaimed happily.

I earned the smallest of smiles from Lissa. She checked her phone, and I felt her anxiety through the bond. It was time to check the test.

"Rose, I can't do it. You look," she begged me.

I smiled. "Okay, Lissa." She turned to face the wall, and I walked over to look at the test. It showed two lines, meaning . . .

My squeal alerted her to the results.

"Congratulations, Lissa!" I said happily, hugging her tight.

"I'm pregnant . . . I'm having a baby . . . OH MY GOD I'M HAVING A BABY!" she screamed in excitement. Happy tears fell down her face.

Dimitri came running at the sound of her scream. "You're WHAT?" he asked, eyes wide.

"I'M HAVING A BABY!" she yelled again.

Dimitri stepped forward to hug her, congratulating her.

"Oh my God, you just found the perfect Christmas present for Christian! Looks like you won't need that puppy anymore," I joked. Lissa rolled her eyes. "But, yeah. You could, like, get a shoebox and put some baby shoes in there with a note or something."

"Perfect!" Lissa said with a grin. "It's gonna be hard keeping the secret until tomorrow, but I'll manage."

We all went downstairs to where the bags of baby clothes were and grabbed one of the many pairs of shoes, then grabbed one of Dimitri's old shoeboxes. Lissa wrote a note, tucked it in with the shoes, closed the box, then wrapped it in some wrapping paper.

She put it under our Christmas tree, where at some point in the day, all of our friends had put their presents.

She looked at the clock on her phone. "I'd better get home. Chris is probably wondering why I've been here so long."

"I'll walk you there," I said.

"Don't be ridiculous, Rose. I live right next to you."

I rolled my eyes. "Fine. But I'm watching from the door to make sure you get in okay."

Lissa didn't dispute that. I watched her go, feeling happy. Lissa was pregnant. I wasn't the only one who would be a moose by the time this was over!

When I saw that she had gotten in, I turned to Dimitri. He wrapped his arms around me and hugged me tightly, rocking from side to side.

"I can't wait for the Christmases when we'll make cookies with the kids to put out for 'Santa', with a glass of milk. I can't wait to see their faces when they open the presents that 'Santa' brought them," I said softly.

"Me either, Roza. Me either," Dimitri said in agreement. "I can't wait until we can hold them."

"Yeah, I know. It'll be weird, though, not having them inside of me. You get used to it after a while . . . the little kicks, the way they move . . . even the belly. Not that I won't be happy to get my lovely slim figure back," I said, grinning. "It'll feel foreign when they're not in me."

Dimitri smiled. "But worth it."

He leaned down to gently press his lips to mine. I melted into him, going limp. The things this man did to me . . .

Suddenly, the door opened, and we burst apart.

"Whoa," said Viktoria. "Sorry to interrupt your make-out session . . . I'll just go to bed now . . ."

I caught her by the arm. "Wait. Guess what?"

"What?"

"Chicken butt!" I exclaimed, laughing. "Sorry, I had to. Anyways, Liss is pregnant!"

Viktoria's jaw dropped. "Are you serious?" she asked incredulously. I nodded. "What does Chris think?"

"He doesn't know yet. She's surprising him for Christmas." I explained to her what Lissa had done, and she grinned.

"That's _so_ cute!" she squealed.

"I know!"

Dimitri rolled his eyes and walked away, muttering about going deaf from the squealing and screaming women in his life.

Laughing, I followed him, saying goodnight to Viktoria. We headed off to our room, changed into our pyjamas, then cuddled under the covers.

I yawned. "Merry Christmas, comrade."

"Merry Christmas, Roza."

~VA~

We woke up early the next day. I texted everyone, telling them it was okay to come over now. Dimitri went to get Viktoria out of bed while I turned the coffee pot on.

The first people to arrive were Lissa and Christian, since they lived next door. Lissa and I shared an excited look before I hugged her and Chris. "Merry Christmas, guys."

"You too, Rosie," Christian replied, grinning.

"I suppose I'll let it slide since it's Christmas . . ." I said, flicking his ear.

"You two are worse than children," Lissa muttered, making her way to the living room. Christian got himself a cup of coffee before following her.

Eddie and Mia arrived next. They both got some coffee and went to the living room.

Adrian was the last to arrive. I hugged him tight.

"Merry Christmas, Adrian."

"Bah, humbug," he said jokingly, giving me a playful push. "Merry Christmas to you too, Rosie-poo."

He ran out of the room before I could hit him, but not before grabbing some coffee.

Grinning, I tightened my robe and walked out to the living room, sitting between Dimitri and Lissa.

"Someone bring me my presents!" I said. Grinning, Eddie gathered up all of my presents and brought them over to me.

"There you go, Rose," he said.

"Thanks, Ed! You're my new favorite person."

"What an honor!" he joked.

Still smiling, I picked up a box. It was from Lissa. I shook it, trying to guess what was inside, but I had no idea. Shrugging, I tore off the wrapping paper. What I found was a new netbook computer, and it was blue.

I gave her a hug. "Thanks, Liss! I love it," I told her honestly.

She smiled widely. "You're welcome. I'm glad you like it!"

Next, I picked up a small bag. It was from Dimitri. I pulled the tissue paper out, finding two wrapped boxes inside. I picked up the smaller of the two, unwrapping it. It was a jewellery box. I pinched it between my fingers and opened it, revealing a silver charm bracelet. The charms he'd bought for it were: A horse, a baby bottle, a heart, a stake, a ring, and a small circle with an inscription on it that said '_Merry Christmas, Roza. Love, comrade.'_"

I stared at it, speechless.

"Do you like it?" he asked.

"I love it," I whispered, taking it out of the box. I handed it to him so that he could fasten it on my wrist.

I grabbed the second box, finding that it too was a jewellery box. I opened it to find a beautiful white gold necklace. There was a heart hanging from it, encrusted with diamonds and amethysts.

He fastened it around my neck, and the heart settled into the hollow of my throat.

I kissed him softly. "Thank you, Dimitri. I love them."

"You're welcome, Roza." He pulled one more thing out of his pocket: A tube of lip gloss, the same kind he'd gotten me before.

I began to cry, damn hormones. I hugged him tight, telling him how sweet he was for remembering something like that.

I opened the rest of my presents. Adrian had given me a fifty dollar iTunes card, Viktoria had given me a hemp bracelet that she'd made herself, Eddie and Mia had given me a spa day, and Christian had given me a lump of coal.

"Thanks, Chris," I said dryly, holding it up.

He grinned. "I'm kidding. Here," he said, handing me a bag that he'd stashed behind the couch.

He'd actually gotten me the best thing I could have asked for: A McDonald's gift card.

"Chris," I said seriously, "I think I love you."

"Well, I am a loveable person," he joked. He hugged me anyway. "You're welcome, by the way."

"You don't need thanks. The reaction is thanks enough," I told him, grinning.

Dimitri opened his gifts next, and I swear to God, he got enough Western books to fill a library. Christian got him a new duster, too.

I handed him a long, skinny box that held his present from me. He unwrapped it and opened the box. Nestled into the tissue paper was a brand new stake. I'd gotten it specially made, with abstract designs all over it. Near the handle, there was a Russian inscription that read 'Love Is Eternal. I Love You, Dimitri. Love Your Roza'.

"Wow, Roza . . . it's amazing. Thank you," he said quietly, kissing my temple.

"You're welcome," I replied.

Along with the ring he'd given her two days before, Adrian gave Viktoria a brand new iPhone 4.

"That way, we can see each other anytime. Just use FaceTime," he said, smiling.

Viktoria gave Adrian some CDs that he wanted.

Eddie had bought Mia some earrings, and Mia had gotten Eddie a photo album filled with tons of photos.

Lissa and Christian exchanged gifts last. Christian went first, handing her a small box. She opened it quickly, gasping when she saw what it was.

Nestled into the velvet folds of the jewellery box was a beautiful diamond ring.

Christian lowered himself off the couch and onto one knee, taking Lissa's hand in his. She was absolutely speechless.

"You're the best thing that's ever happened to me, and I love you more than my own life. I know that we were meant to be; would you please become my wife?" he asked in a cute little rhyme.

Everyone was quiet for a few seconds before Lissa bent down to kiss him.

"Yes," she replied. "YES!" she screeched.

Christian stood, pulling her up with him, and hugged her tightly. When they separated, he took the ring out of the box and slipped it on her finger.

"It was my mother's," he said, smiling.

She hugged her hand to her chest. "It's beautiful, Chris." She bent down and grabbed her present to him. "Here you go."

"Man, his present is gonna be hard for you to top, Liss," Adrian said. Little did he know what the present was.

Christian tore the wrapping paper off, revealing the shoebox.

"Open it," she said, grinning.

Shrugging, he opened it. He looked inside, puzzled, before he noticed the note and read it. He dropped the box, his eyes wide and his mouth hanging open.

"What?" Mia asked. "What is it?"

Seeing that Christian was incapable of answering, Adrian grabbed the box. He pulled out the shoes and the note, and began reading it aloud. "'I know that these are too small for you, but they're the perfect size for the child we're going to have in nine months,'" he read, clearly shocked. He turned to Lissa. "You've got a bun in the oven?" he asked.

Lissa nodded excitedly. "I found out last night. Rose helped me put this together," she replied.

"Congrats, cousin," Adrian said, getting up to hug her.

I walked over to Christian. "Are you okay?" I asked.

"I'm . . . I'm great. No, better than great! I'm . . . stupendous!" he exclaimed. "I'm going to be a dad!" He turned and pulled Lissa to him, pressing his lips to hers. "I love you, Vasilisa Dragomir," he declared.

She giggled. "I love you too, Christian Ozera."

"Yeah, her present definitely topped yours, Chris," Adrian said, grinning.

Just then, there was a knock at the door.

"I'll get it. It's probably just Mom and Dad or something," I said, unwrapping Dimitri's arm from around me and making my way to the door. I opened it, but found no one there. Looking around, I spotted an envelope on the ground. Shrugging, I bent over to pick it up. My name was written in elegant cursive on the front, so I closed the door and tore the envelope open.

It turned out to be a letter. It read:

_Dearest Rosemarie,_

_Are you enjoying your Christmas? I hope you are, because it's the last one you'll ever live to see._

_See, at first, all I'd wanted was to awaken you and Dimitri. Due to recent events, though, I've changed my mind. The two of you are just thorns in my side, and you'd both be too much of a nuisance to keep around forever._

_Oh, dear me, how thoughtless I've been! I forgot to ask about how your children are doing. It must be such a daunting task, carrying three babies. I do hope I'll be meeting them soon! But, hmm, we wouldn't want them getting hurt, now, would we? And they won't be, that is, if you and Dimitri come quietly when the time comes._

_You sealed your fate when you killed Nathan, Rose. You should be more careful with who you mess with._

_Well, I've given you something to consider, now, haven't I? I do hope you make the right choice. But, I'm not above harming your babies if things don't go my way._

_Galina_

Oh no. _Hell_ no. She did _not_ just threaten my family.

"Dimitri," I called, "get down here. _Now."_

Seconds later, he was at my side. "What is it, Roza?" he asked worriedly.

I thrust the note into his hands and ran upstairs to the living room. I began pacing, and everyone looked concerned about how pissed off I was.

"Rose," Adrian said cautiously, "what's wrong?"

"That bitch Galina is what's wrong!" I screeched, grabbing a coaster off the coffee table and chucking it at the wall. I screamed in frustration.

I heard Adrian whisper to Lissa about my aura, how dark it was. They looked equally concerned, but I was so consumed with hate that it was hard to think about anything other than ripping Galina's head off. _No one_ threatened my family and got away with it.

"I'm gonna fucking rip her a new asshole!" I shrieked.

"Rose, calm down and tell us what the hell is going on," Christian said slowly. My anger spiked.

"Don't tell me to calm down, Chris. That bitch is gonna pay!" With that, I punched the wall as hard as I could, my hand going through, but I felt no pain. I ran up to my room, where I paced some more.

**Dimitri POV**

Rose handed me the note and ran up the stairs.

As my eyes scanned over the note, I grew angrier and angrier.

I heard Rose scream about Galina, then a thud as something hit the wall. Moments later, I heard her yell, "I'm gonna fucking rip her a new asshole!"

I then heard Christian say, "Rose, calm down and tell us what the hell is going on."

Finally, Rose screech, "Don't tell me to calm down, Chris. That bitch is gonna pay!" Then, I heard a loud noise, gasps, then Rose's footsteps as she ran upstairs.

"Dammit," I muttered as I ran up to the living room, finding the shocked faces of our friends. That's when I saw the hole in the wall.

"Did she punch a hole in the wall?" I asked incredulously. They all nodded silently, obviously shocked by Rose's outburst. I handed Christian the note, then ran up after Rose.

Adrian stopped me. "Be careful, man. There's too much darkness in her aura," he warned me. I nodded, then ran up the stairs.

I found her pacing in the bedroom, her expression murderous.

"Roza," I said calmly, "let me see your hand."

She glared at me. "No. I'm gonna make Galina wish she hadn't sent that letter!" she growled.

"Roza, please calm down and think about this rationally!"

"_Don't_ tell me to calm down, Dimitri."

"Rose, it's spirit's darkness that's getting to you. Please, take a deep breath and sit down. Think about the babies," I pleaded.

"_I AM THINKING ABOUT THE BABIES!"_ she shrieked.

"Roza, this isn't you. Let the darkness go, for the babies."

A glimmer of sanity passed over her face, and I watched as she waged an inner war.

Finally, she swayed, almost falling, but I caught her. Shaking, she buried her face in my chest. I lifted her easily and laid her on the bed, pulling the covers over her. I laid next to her, stroking her hair.

"It's never going to end, is it?" she asked tearfully. "We're always going to be in danger."

I reached up to catch a tear. "No, we won't. We'll get her, Roza. Together," I told her, pressing a kiss to her forehead.

"I just hate being afraid, Dimitri. Afraid to leave the wards. Afraid that any minute, Galina could kill us. I'm not used to being afraid."

"Rose, honey, I'm just as scared as you are. But we can't let our fear control us. We need to keep functioning like normal. Galina wants us to be afraid, to be so overcome with fear that we become submissive to her. We can't give her that power over us," I said softly.

"I know. You're right. It's just hard not to be, because it isn't just anymore. It's Annika, Skylar and Aleksandr too. They're in just as much danger as we are, now," she pointed out.

"We'll get through this, love."

We laid there in silence for a few minutes before I began humming softly to her, stroking her hair. She was soon asleep, and I left her to rest.

**_Oooh, what are they gonna do about Galina?_**

**_Who thought that Viktoria and Adrian went all the way?_**

**_Which Christmas present was your favorite?_**

**_What do you think about Lissa being pregnant?_**

**_Answer these questions and tell me what you thought of the chapter in a review! Oh, and thanks to everyone who reviewed on chapter 25 :) they really made my day!_**

**_Until next time, peeps!_**

**_~Sarah~_**


	31. Chapter 32

_**A/N: Short, fluffy-ish chapter :P I promise that the next chapter is longer :) I know that because it's already done, as well as half of the one after that! I'm on a roll!**_

_**You know the drill, I don't own it.**_

**CHAPTER **Twenty-Seven

**Dimitri POV**

I went back downstairs after Rose fell asleep. I was so troubled by everything, and I knew that it was worse for her.

When I got into the living room, all eyes were on me.

"She's asleep," I told them, sighing. I plopped down on the nearest couch, beside Christian.

"That's good. . . . I can't even begin to imagine how the two of you must feel right now, Dimitri," Adrian said solemnly.

"Pretty crappy." I sighed again. "Rose is a mess. After I calmed her down, she just laid there and cried. I hate seeing her so upset . . ." I said quietly, putting my face in my hands.

"I know," Lissa replied, giving me a sympathetic look. "How is her hand?" she asked.

"I didn't get around to looking at it yet," I responded.

"Well, I'm sure she'll want it looked at when she wakes up," Viktoria said.

I nodded.

What a Christmas this was turning out to be.

**Rose POV**

I woke up some time later with an aching hand. I groaned. I just had to punch a wall, didn't I?

Stretching, I got out of bed and made my way downstairs, where everyone sat in the living room. I saw the hole I'd made in the wall and grimaced.

"Sleeping Beauty awakens," Dimitri said, earning a small smile from me.

I held up my injured hand. "Can you bandage me up?" I asked him.

"Of course." He rose from the couch and pulled me into the kitchen. He grabbed the First Aid Kit and grabbed everything necessary for bandaging me up.

I winced as he disinfected the cuts, but said nothing. He bandaged my hand quickly and efficiently.

When we re-entered the living room, Lissa threw her arms around me.

"Are you okay?" she asked, concern in her jade green eyes.

I nodded. "Still upset, but nothing I can't handle. It's safe to say that there won't be another outburst anytime soon," I replied.

"That's good." She looked at me sadly. "What are you gonna do?"

I sighed. "I have no idea, Liss. But she won't get anywhere near my babies, that's for sure," I told her, my resolve strong. I meant what I said; she wouldn't ever lay a hand on my babies. I'd do anything to keep them safe.

We stayed there for a few hours before we ordered our Christmas dinner of pizza and garlic fingers.

Christian smirked. "It's nice to see you cooked, Rosie," he said mockingly.

I gave him the finger. "You try being twenty-five weeks pregnant with triplets and see how much you want to cook a big dinner. Even if I did, it probably wouldn't even be edible."

"Good point," he mumbled.

The doorbell rang, and Eddie went down to get it. I heard an exclamation of surprise, then footsteps coming up the stairs.

It turned out to be Alberta and what must have been her son, Jeremy, and her daughter, Jemma.

I got up to hug Alberta. "Merry Christmas, Alberta," I said.

"Merry Christmas to you too, Rose," she replied, smiling. "Jem, Jer, this is Rose Hathaway, Dimitri Belikov, Lissa Dragomir, Christian Ozera, Adrian Ivashkov, Viktoria Belikova, Eddie Castile and Mia Rinaldi," she said, pointing each of us out as she said our names. "Guys, this is my daughter Jemma and my son Jeremy."

"Hi, guys," I said, extending my hand. They each shook it.

"Hello, Rose. It's nice to meet you! Mom's told us so much about you," Jemma told me, smiling. She was pretty, with dark brown hair and sea grey eyes. Jeremy looked much the same as his sister, but his eyes were crystal blue. He must have gotten them from his father, seeing as Alberta's eyes were grey.

"I hope she told you the good stuff instead of how bad I was in school," I said jokingly.

"She had nothing but praise for you," Jeremy said with a grin.

"Would the three of you like some of our Christmas pizza?" Dimitri asked politely. They all smiled and accepted.

There was another knock on the door. I sighed. "I'll get it."

I made my way down the stairs and opened the door, revealing my mother and father. I gave them tight hugs. We walked upstairs together where, to my surprise, my mother gave Alberta a hug.

"Hello, Janine," the older woman greeted her warmly.

"Hi, Alberta. It's been a while," Mom replied, smiling.

"It certainly has. Six months, if I'm right," Alberta said. "Jeremy, Jemma, this is Janine Hathaway. I was her mentor back at St. Peter's Academy in Scotland." Mom shook both of their hands.

My jaw dropped. "You were Mom's mentor?" I asked incredulously.

Alberta nodded, a mischievous gleam in her eyes. "Where do you think she learned how to be such an amazing guardian?"

"I . . . I dunno, I just thought she was naturally awesome!"

Mom rolled her eyes. "Rose, I was like you: I acted out, but I had potential. Alberta took me under her wing and taught me everything she knew."

"Wow!" I exclaimed.

"That's why I sent you to St. Vladimir's, Rose. I knew that Alberta was there, and I knew she'd watch over you for me."

My eyes watered. Even though she'd left me at the Academy, she left me with someone she knew and trusted.

"Oh, Mom!" I cried, throwing myself into her arms. She hugged me back tightly, rubbing my back.

"Damn hormones . . ." I muttered when we separated. I looked to Lissa. "You're going to have a real fun time, Liss," I told her sarcastically.

Mom's, Dad's and Alberta's jaws dropped. "You're PREGNANT?" they chorused.

"Uhh . . . yeah . . ." she mumbled. "Engaged, too." She held up her left hand as proof.

"Wow, I guess a lot can change in a few days," Dad commented.

Lissa chuckled. "Yeah, I guess so."

I cleared my throat. "Mom, Dad, Dimitri and I need to speak with you in the kitchen for a minute," I said.

There must have been something in my voice that made them come so quickly.

"What is it, Rosie?" Mom asked, concern in her brown eyes.

Dimitri pulled the letter out of his pocket and handed it to my parents. "Read it," I told them. Confused, they nodded.

By the time they finished, Dad was shaking with unconcealed rage. Mom, however, was more subtle with her anger. Her face was straight, but the constant clenching and unclenching of her fist let me know just how mad she was.

"I'll kill her." Dad's voice was steely, and for the first time, I saw just how scary he could be.

"When did you get this letter?" Mom asked, the picture of calm.

"A few hours ago," I replied.

Dad began to pace. "The question is, how did she get it here?"

"I've thought about that," Dimitri said, "and the only thing I can come up with is that she must have people watching us, reporting to her."

Dad swore and paced even faster. I just rubbed my belly and tried not to think about the fact that someone could be watching us right now. Sensing my distress, Dimitri wrapped an arm around me and held me close, pressing a kiss to my temple.

Suddenly, Dad stopped. "You two can't be alone. I'll have people patrolling your house from now on," he said. "No buts," he added, seeing my mouth open to protest. I crossed my arms over my chest and glared; I was predictable.

With that, he left the kitchen, phone in hand. He walked down the hall to the babies' room, presumably to make some calls.

I sighed and sat at the breakfast bar. Mom and Dimitri sat beside me.

"I'm so goddamn tired of this shit getting thrown at us," I muttered, rubbing my belly. I felt a flutter and a nudge under my hand, _almost_ bringing a smile to my face. _Almost._

"I know, honey," Mom said, rubbing my back. She changed the subject. "Are the babies moving around a lot?" she asked.

I gestured to my belly. "Feel for yourself."

She rested her hand over the bulge, feeling around. A brilliant smile lit her face when she felt a small kick.

"They know their Nanny already," I whispered.

Her eyes watered. "I love my little grandbabies," she said softly, rubbing my belly. She was answered with more kicks.

"It's done. I'll have people patrolling by the end of the night," Dad announced.

Completely ignoring what he said, Mom waved him over. "Abe, come feel!" she said.

He raised an eyebrow at her, but came anyway. She took his hand and placed it on my belly.

We waited in silence before I felt the kick. Dad grinned. "Strong kid," he commented.

"Yeah, imagine how it feels when they're kicking my insides," I grumbled.

"You know you love it, Roza," Dimitri said, grinning.

I rolled my eyes and smiled. "Yeah, I do." I sighed. "Well, we have guests, and we're being rude by staying out here. Let's go," I said, standing up from my chair. I was starting to get a horrible back ache, and I tried to stretch to see if it would help at all. I rested one hand on my lower back and made my way out to the living room, the others following behind me.

"Sorry about that," I said, smiling at everyone. My eyes met Lissa's, and I knew that she knew that I went to tell my parents about the note.

Alberta smiled. "It's all right, Rose."

I plopped down on the couch, sighing. "My back is aching," I grumbled.

"Well, you are carrying around three kids. It can't be easy on the back," Viktoria said.

I shrugged. "You do what you have to, I guess."

"Yeah. You were a heavy baby, Rose. And you kicked a lot. I thought I was going to fall apart by the end of the pregnancy," Mom said, scowling. Then, she grinned. "But it was worth it to see my baby girl for the first time."

"Aww, Mom!" I said, grinning. "I love you."

She smiled. "I love you too, Rosie."

**_Haha yeah, pretty fluffy :) I can't say the same for the next chapter though...hehehe :)_**

**_Please review and tell me what you thought :)_**

**_~Sar~_**


	32. Chapter 33

_**A/N: Hey guys! Sorry for the wait, I've just been writing up a storm! I'm currently writing chapter 31 of this :)**_

_**Thank you so much to everyone who's reviewed :D you guys make me so happy with all of the compliments, and man, I'm starting to get a big ego! XD**_

_**I hope this chapter answered everyone's concerns about Donnie and the horses :)**_

_**Trouble's brewing...'nuff said :)**_

_**~I Heart Herondale Boys~**_

**CHAPTER **Twenty-Eight

**~Ten Weeks Later~  
(35 Weeks Pregnant)**

As I brushed Callie's mane, I nearly cried. She and the other horses had been so sad for the past few weeks, ever since Donnie had passed away.

I thought back to the day it happened.

_~Flashback~_

It was the start of our second week back in Russia, and we were headed over to Donnie's. I'd been itching to see the horses, and Dimitri finally agreed to take me today, since it wasn't as cold as it had been the past few days. Viktoria and Adrian were tagging along, and we were all excited.

As soon as the car stopped, I was out. I was running, and I nearly fell on a giant patch of ice.

"Whoa!" I exclaimed, trying to steady myself. Dimitri's arm shot out and caught me, and I smiled appreciatively at him.

"I wonder why Donnie hasn't put any salt down," Viktoria said, looking around. "It looks like he hasn't been out in a few days, either."

I was immediately on high alert. This was too similar to the time Dimitri and I had discovered the attack at the Badica house. My eyes locked with his, and I knew that he was thinking the same thing.

"Stay here," we said to Viktoria and Adrian. They looked puzzled, but nodded.

I reached my hand into my pocket, and my fingers touched the cool metal of my stake. Even though it was the afternoon, I had to be on high alert.

We made our way to the barn, our feet crunching in the unbroken snow.

"You should be at the car with them," Dimitri whispered.

I shook my head. "No way. Even twenty-seven weeks pregnant, I can still kick ass and you know it."

Sighing, he kept going.

We found the barn empty, other than the horses. As soon as they saw us, they started going crazy.

"Something's wrong, Dimitri. I can feel it," I whispered.

"I know."

Leaving the horses, we made our way to Donnie's house. The door was locked, but that meant little.

"Stand back," Dimitri said quietly. Nodding, I stepped a few paces to the side.

He rammed his shoulder hard into the door, and it burst open.

We quietly made our way inside, splitting up to scope out the house.

When I got to Donnie's room, I had to hold back a gasp.

Donnie laid in his bed, breathing heavily. It looked as if he couldn't quite catch his breath. A sheen of sweat covered his skin, and he was so pale.

"Donnie," I whispered, walking over to sit beside him on his bed.

He smiled weakly. "Hey, kiddo," he murmured.

I grabbed his hand. "What happened?" I asked.

He coughed violently. "Lung cancer," he wheezed.

"Dimitri! He's in here!" I called. I turned back to Donnie. "How long have you had cancer, Donnie?"

"Six years," he breathed. "I knew my time was coming; I just didn't realize it would be so soon."

"Don't say that, Donnie. You're not going to die. I'll get Adrian to heal you or something—"

He shook his head. "No, Rose. It's my time to go."

Dimitri walked in just as he was saying that. "What's going on?" he asked.

"I'm dying, Dimitri."

My eyes watered, and I shook my head. "No, Donnie. Please no," I said desperately, my tears brimming over and sliding down my face.

"Don't cry, kiddo. It'll be alright." He rubbed my hand, and his expression changed. "Why aren't you yelling at me for calling you kiddo?" he asked.

"Because I've always liked it when you called me kiddo. It was something that only you would call me. And you can call me whatever you want if you just please don't die on me." My voice started at a normal volume, but gradually dropped to a whisper.

He smiled. "Sorry, Rose." He looked at my big belly and smiled a little wider. "May I?"

Wiping at my eyes, I nodded.

He rested his hand over my belly. His expression turned to one of wonder when he felt a kick under his hand.

"Do you two know what you're having?" he asked.

I sniffled. "Two girls and a boy."

"What are you naming them?"

"Skylar, Annika and Aleksandr," Dimitri replied. He too had tears in his eyes, and my heart broke for him. He'd known Donnie nearly all his life, and Donnie had been like a father to him.

"Pretty," he murmured. "You two are going to be the best parents to these little babies. I just wish I'd be here to see them."

"You will be!" I yelled, my desperation taking over. I collapsed into sobs, hugging Donnie and begging him not to die.

"Shh," he whispered. "It's gonna be okay, kiddo."

"No it's not," I said quietly, sniffling.

Donnie turned to Dimitri. "You take good care of her and those babies, kid. You struck gold when you met her. Make sure you always tell her how much you love her."

"I will, Donnie. I'm going to miss you," Dimitri said, a tear sliding down his face.

"I'll miss you too, kid. You were always like a son to me."

Dimitri buried his face in his hands, and I hugged Donnie tighter.

Moments later, Donnie was gone.

I'd begun screaming hysterically, feeling for a pulse.

"He's gone, Rose," Dimitri whispered, prying me away from Donnie's body.

I buried my face in his chest, shaking.

"Go tell Vika to call an ambulance," he said quietly.

Nodding, I turned to leave. As I was turning, though, I saw a note addressed to Dimitri and I on Donnie's nightstand.

I grabbed it and unfolded it, then read it aloud.

" 'I'm sorry that I never told the two of you about my cancer. I didn't want to worry anyone with my problems. I know that I don't have much time left, so I'm writing this for the two of you.

" 'I know how much the two of you love my horses. That's why I feel that there's no better people to keep them than the two of you. I know that you'd take good care of them and give them the attention they need. I trust that you will take them for me, so that I can rest easy in the afterlife. They'll be in good hands with you.' "

"Donnie . . ." Dimitri murmured.

"Dimitri, I need to make sure that this is what he really wants," I said, looking him straight in the eyes. I watched as he realized what I was going to do, but I was already ridding myself of the mental blocks I kept up.

I was flooded by shapes and skulls.

"Go away," I hissed. "I don't need you. Go." When the ghosts cleared away, I cleared my throat. "Donnie, are you here?" I asked.

The air shimmered before me, and Donnie appeared.

"Donnie . . ." I breathed.

He smiled at me and waved.

I held up the note. "Is this what you want?" I asked.

Still smiling, he nodded.

"You're sure?"

He nodded again.

"Okay," I replied. "Goodbye, Donnie."

I saw him mouth "See ya, kiddo" before disappearing.

I put my mental blocks back up, thoroughly exhausted. My eyes were watering once more, and I couldn't stop the tears from falling.

"He wants us to have them," I said quietly. I wiped at my eyes, but the tears didn't stop. "I'll go tell Tori and Adrian."

Dimitri nodded, and I turned and left.

I walked through the snow, the silence oppressive. The only sound was the slight crunch of my boots in the snow, and it wasn't even that loud. Even the horses had gone silent.

When Viktoria and Adrian saw me coming, they ran out of the car. Then they saw my face.

All of the color drained from their faces. "What happened?" Viktoria asked, deadpan.

"Donnie's dead," I said, sniffling and wiping my eyes. "Dimitri needs you to call the ambulance to come get him."

"What?" Adrian asked disbelievingly.

"He had lung cancer and he never told any of us before now. He died in my arms," I whispered, wrapping my arms around myself.

Viktoria gasped, and Adrian hugged me tightly. I buried my face in his shoulder and cried, my whole body shaking.

I heard Viktoria talking on the phone, while Adrian whispered comforting words in my ear.

"I'm going to see Dimitri," Viktoria said. I felt as Adrian nodded, then heard the crunch of her boots as she left.

"Little dhampir, are you okay?" he asked, pulling back to look at me.

I wiped my eyes and shook my head. "I need to go see the horses. Can you come with me?" I asked, pleading with my eyes.

"Of course."

I held his hand in both of mine as we walked to the barn.

I immediately ran to Callie's stall, unlocking it and throwing my arms around her neck. She whinnied softly at me.

"What are we gonna do, girl?" I whispered.

_~End Flashback~_

Donnie's funeral had been a few days after.

We'd moved the horses here to Pennsylvania, though we didn't have any room for them at Court yet. Lissa was working hard to fix that.

Speaking of Lissa.

The day after Christmas, I'd received a note. It was from Tatiana. It turns out that Lissa wasn't the only Dragomir; she had a sibling somewhere.

Abe immediately got his people looking for the mystery sibling, and they found her a week later.

As it turns out, it was fifteen year old Jill Mastrano.

Once she'd been brought to Court, Lissa had been nominated to be the Queen, done the tests, and passed all of them. She won the election by a landslide, and was now Queen of the Moroi.

Now, after three weeks, she still seemed to be in shock about it. But she handled it with grace, and fell into the role seemingly easily.

I sighed and put Callie's brush down. "It's getting late, and I have to go. I'll come back tomorrow, girl," I said quietly, rubbing her muzzle.

She whinnied in reply, and I knew that she understood.

"Dimitri, we'd better go," I called. He popped his head out of Shadow's stall and nodded.

I waddled out of Callie's stall, resting my hand on my giant belly. It wouldn't be long before I had the babies, since triplets almost never made it full term. I was excited, but scared at the same time. I wondered if I'd be a good mother. If I'd be able to take care of them properly.

Dimitri wrapped his arms around me from behind, resting his hands on my stomach. I smiled.

"Ready to go?" he asked.

I nodded. "It's still dark, and you know how nervous I get," I replied.

He sighed. "I know."

Holding hands, we said goodbye to all of our horses and walked out into the cool night.

There was something eerie about how deserted the place was. I felt like I was being watched.

"Dimitri," I whispered, "I have a really bad feeling about this."

Right after I spoke the words, nausea rolled over me. I looked frantically at Dimitri, whose face had shifted into battle mode.

"Get behind me, Rose," he said quietly, but full of authority.

I let him push me behind him, and we stood back to back.

And I stared right into red-ringed eyes.

"Galina," I snarled.

I heard her laughter and watched as she stepped into the light of the streetlight. "Hello, Rose. Fancy meeting you here," she said casually.

"Oh, yes. What a surprise," I said sarcastically.

"Rose," Dimitri said, his tone of voice warning me not to do anything stupid.

"You know, I've waited for this for so long," Galina told me, smirking. "And now, here you and Dimitri are, and it's ten times better than I imagined." In a flash, she was directly in front of me. "I'm going to enjoy watching the two of you beg for mercy."

Dimitri turned so that he was beside me, his expression fierce. "You'll be the one begging for mercy, Galina."

"Oh, Dimka . . . how you've grown. I remember back when you were a volatile teen with no control . . ." she trailed off, grinning. "You think you've come so far, but you really still just that damaged little boy with the screwed up life and an abusive father."

"Shut up," he said, deathly quiet. Somehow, it made it so much scarier than if he'd yelled it.

"Why, Dimka? Still dealing with your daddy issues? Do you wish you had a father who loved you?" she asked. "I bet you'll turn out just like your father. Treating your wife and kids like garbage. Maybe your son will end up beating _you_ up."

"SHUT UP!" he exploded, lashing out blindly. Galina easily deflected him, laughing.

"Leave him alone!" I yelled.

"Or what? You gonna sit on me?" she asked.

I growled and sunk into a protective crouch.

Galina snapped her fingers, and several more Strigoi appeared.

Dimitri pushed me behind him again. Galina snapped her fingers once more, and three of her cronies came forward and started attacking Dimitri. They were good, too; he was having a hard time with them.

Once they'd gotten him far enough from me, Galina pounced. I barely dodged her, and didn't have time to block her before she punched me—in the stomach. Pain exploded through my mid-section, and I doubled over, a scream ripping its way out of my throat.

"Roza!" Dimitri yelled. I heard the screams of the Strigoi as he pierced their hearts, but I didn't see. I was too fixated on the pain that I was in.

I felt a gush, so I reached between my legs.

My hand came back covered in blood.

**_Don't shoot!_**

**_Man, I'm going to find an angry mob outside my house for this one, aren't I? I'd better get started on the barricades, and get some armor to protect me from torches and pitchforks :S_**

**_Review and tell me how angry at me you are! Let it all out!_**

**_~Sar~_**


	33. Chapter 34

_**A/N: Well, here we go! This chapter is kinda short, and it's a bunch of different POVs :) I hope you guys like it!**_

_**I absolutely loved everyone's reviews :D they made me laugh, because most of them were threatening :P I loved it! Keep 'em coming, people!**_

_**~I Heart Herondale Boys~**_

**CHAPTER **Twenty-Nine

**Lissa POV**

I was just finishing writing an important document when my phone rang. I looked at the caller ID and saw that it was Dimitri.

"Hello?" I said, picking up my papers and making sure they were even.

"Lissa! Oh my God, we need a car at the stables _now._" Dimitri sounded so panicked, and my heart dropped.

"What happened?" I asked, taking a deep breath.

"It's Rose."

With those two words, my world shattered. "What's wrong with her?"

"Galina attacked. I was trying to fight off three Strigoi and she attacked Rose. She . . . she punched her in the stomach. Rose is bleeding and I don't know what to do! And they did something to the engine of our car so I can't get her to the hospital."

"We'll be right there." I said before hanging up. "CHRIS!" I yelled. I heard him come running.

"What is it?" he asked.

"We need to go to the stables _right now._"

"Why?"

"Rose was attacked," I replied.

His eyes widened, and he nodded. "But what about the Royal Guard? How can we get around them?"

"I don't know, I'll compel them or something! We just really need to go!"I exclaimed.

"Okay," Christian said hurriedly.

Sighing, I collapsed in my chair and called my guards in. I looked straight into all of their eyes one by one and called on my magic.

"I never left this room. You won't remember coming in here, only standing guard," I said smoothly. They all nodded robotically and left the room.

I had to lean on Chris as we made our way to the car because using so much magic wore me out. But my only concern was getting to Rose.

**Adrian POV**

I was still asleep when my phone rang.

Groaning, I turned over and pulled the pillow over my ears, trying to block out the noise. But it wouldn't stop ringing, so I finally opened my eyes and answered.

"Hello?" I said sleepily.

"Adrian! Get your ass out of bed _now_," Lissa growled.

I shot up in bed. She sounded pissed at me, but there was an undercurrent of mindless fear in her voice. "What's going on?"

"Rose was attacked and she's bleeding. Chris and I are on our way to get her and Dimitri, so meet us at the hospital in twenty minutes. Got it?"

My eyes widened. "Shit. Got it."

She hung up, and I jumped out of bed. I pulled some pants and an old shirt on, brushed my teeth, washed my hair, then called Viktoria.

We were on FaceTime, and I saw that I'd woken her up.

"What's wrong? You look so upset," she said immediately, her eyebrows knitting together.

"It's Rose. She was attacked I guess. Before you ask, that's all Lissa's told me. I'm going to meet them at the hospital. I'll update you later, okay? I just wanted to let you know what was going on."

"Okay. God, Adrian, I hope her and the babies are okay. I don't know what I'll do," she told me, biting her lip.

"I know, Viki. I'll call you later, okay?"

She nodded. "I love you."

"I love you too."

She hung up, and I left to go wait at the hospital.

**Viktoria POV**

"MAMA!" I yelled, jumping out of bed. I pulled my robe on and ran down the stairs, still yelling for my mother.

She popped her head out of the kitchen and looked at me weirdly. "Vika, honey, what's with all of the screaming?" she asked.

"Rose was attacked!" I exclaimed.

Her eyes widened, and she stumbled backwards into a chair, where she sat down. "Oh, Lord . . . is it serious?"

"I don't know. Adrian just called me, and all he knew was that she was attacked. He said he'd call back later to update me," I replied, sinking down in the chair opposite her.

Mama buried her face in her hands. "Vika, what will we do if they're hurt?" she asked, her voice barely a whisper.

I hugged her hard. "I don't know, Mama. I just don't know."

**Abe POV**

I was sitting with Janine when my phone rang. The caller ID told me that it was Christian.

"Abe here," I said, answering the phone.

"Abe! You need to get over to the Court hospital ASAP. Rose and Dimitri were attacked at the stables. We have them in the car now and Lissa's going to try to heal Rose a bit because Galina punched her in the stomach."

My face hardened. "We'll be right there," I replied monotonously before hanging up, squeezing my phone so tightly that it broke.

Janine laid her hand on my arm. "What's wrong?" she asked.

"That bitch punched Rose in the stomach. We need to meet them at the hospital," I replied.

Janine gasped and covered her mouth with her hand. "Oh my God! Well what are we waiting for?"

We jumped up off the couch and ran out the door, not even bothering to lock it.

I just hoped that my daughter and the babies were okay.

**Dimitri POV**

When I saw Galina punch Rose in the stomach, I thought that I was going to be sick. I watched Rose's face as she doubled over, clutching at her stomach. And I watched Galina as she ran like the cowardly bitch she is.

My anger fueling me, I took out all of the Strigoi. After that, I ran to Rose, who was panting hard, staring at her hand—which was covered in blood. It soaked her pants, and my stomach dropped.

I dropped down beside her. "Oh, Roza . . ." I whispered.

"Dimitri, it hurts," she whimpered quietly.

"I know, sweetie." I pulled my phone out of my pocket to call Lissa, holding Rose's hand tightly in mine as I relayed to Lissa what happened. She promised she'd be here right away, and I put my phone away. "We're gonna get you back to Court, Roza. Everything's gonna be okay." At least, I hoped so.

I don't know what I'd do if anything happened to Rose or the babies. I know for a fact that I'd blame myself, because I already do for letting them get hurt at all.

Suddenly, Rose's dream came flashing back to me. Was that how it was destined to happen?

I shook my head to clear my thoughts. I wouldn't let it happen.

Moments later, I saw with relief that Christian's SUV was pulling over to us.

**_Pretty short, and it doesn't give much in the way of Rose's and the babies' health...guess you'll just have to review and show me how much you want the next chapter :) god, I'm such a schemer XD but review and tell me your thoughts :)_**

**_Until next time (which is the big chapter that will answer all of your questions!)_**

**_~Sar~_**

**_(P.S. I might update by the end of the day if I get enough reviews!)_**


	34. Chapter 35

_**A/N: Here we are, big number thirty. This chapter will answer everyone's questions about the babies and Rose, hopefully :P it's a pretty long chapter, and I hope that you won't be disappointed!**_

_**I'm working on chapter 32 right now :)**_

_**Thank you for all of the reviews, they make me laugh so much XD 502! Like, you guys seriously rock :)**_

_**~I Heart Herondale Boys~**_

**CHAPTER **Thirty

**Rose POV**

The pain was probably the worst thing I'd felt in my life. It was a constant thing.

I heard as the SUV pulled up. Dimitri picked me up as gently as he could, but every little movement was like a stabbing pain to my abdomen.

He laid me in the back of the SUV, laying my head on his lap.

Lissa turned around to look at me, tears streaming down her pale face. "Give me your hand," she said, sniffling.

I reached out, and she gently held my hand in hers. I felt hot then cold, and I realized that she was healing me. I tried to pull myself out of her grip, but she wouldn't let go. The pain in my abdomen lifted little by little, but didn't go away entirely.

"Thank you, Lissa," I said quietly.

"You're welcome," she panted, turning back to rest her head against the back of her seat.

A sudden sharp pain made me wince. Dimitri noticed.

"Roza, are you okay?" he asked.

"I'm fine; it was a contraction, I think. These babies want out."

"Chris, drive faster," Dimitri said. Christian immediately accelerated, and we reached the Court hospital moments later. The contractions kept hitting me, and paired with the pain leftover from Galina's punch, I was a mess.

They got me into a wheelchair and wheeled me up to a room, where Dimitri helped me change into one of those horrid hospitals gowns.

Dr. Lewis immediately came and examined me to find out whether I needed an emergency C-section or not. She felt around my belly, listened to their heartbeats, and looked at them with the ultrasound machine.

"I think you'll be fine with just delivering them naturally, Rose," she said, smiling. "You're lucky that your best friend can heal, or else the situation would be much different right now. But yes, it looks as if that punch jumpstarted your labor."

I looked to Lissa, who smiled. "I know," I replied.

"I'll come back to check on you in a little bit, okay?" Dr. Lewis said.

I nodded. "I'll be waiting."

Another contraction hit me, and I winced and clutched at my stomach. Dimitri pushed my hair out of my face and let me squeeze his hand.

"I'll go get the others," Lissa said.

"Who?" I asked.

"Adrian and your parents. I called Adrian before we got you and then Chris called your dad when you were in the car," she replied. "I'll be right back, okay?"

I nodded, and she left.

"How are you feeling, Rose?" Christian asked.

I shrugged. "As good as I can be, I guess," I replied, shrugging.

Christian came and sat on my other side, smiling at me. "Are you excited?"

"Of course," I replied, smiling back. I reached out and took his hand. "Why are you being so nice?"

He laughed. "I've learned to be nice to pregnant women. They're scary," he said.

I burst into laughter. "So the boy finally learns something!" I exclaimed.

"No need to be mean, Roza," Dimitri said amusedly. His mood had lightened considerably after Dr. Lewis examined me.

Lissa came back in, Adrian and my parents by her side.

"Rose," Mom breathed, running over to me and throwing her arms around me. I felt as she began to shake, and she buried her face in my shoulder. "God, Rose, you scared me," she whispered.

"Shh . . . don't cry, Mom. I'm okay; we're all okay," I said soothingly, rubbing her back.

She sniffled and stood back up, letting Abe wrap his arms around her.

"Are you really okay, Rose?" Dad asked.

I nodded. "Dr. Lewis said I'm okay to deliver naturally. She's going to keep monitoring me, though. Make sure there are no serious changes."

Dad nodded, satisfied.

Adrian came and sat beside me on the bed, pulling out his phone. "What are you doing?" I asked.

"Calling Viktoria. She's freaking out, and I'm sure she's told Olena and the others by now." I watched as he made his face neutral, then heard Viktoria's voice as she answered the phone.

"What's going on? Have you heard anything?" she asked hurriedly.

Taking a deep breath, he nodded. "I'm at the hospital now," he said solemnly. I almost rolled my eyes.

"And?" Viktoria prompted him.

A contraction hit, and I groaned.

"Oh my God! Was that her? Is she okay?" Viktoria asked in a flurry of words.

"Adrian, stop tormenting your girlfriend," I panted. "It's not nice."

"ROSE!" I heard her exclaim. Adrian handed me his phone, and I saw Viktoria's relieved face.

"Worried about me, Tori?" I asked, smirking.

Viktoria turned her head. "MAMA! SONYA! KAROLINA! COME HERE!" she yelled excitedly. I heard something clatter, then a flurry of voices as the Belikovas rushed over to Viktoria.

"What is it, Vika?" Olena asked.

Viktoria turned her phone toward her family, and I waved.

"ROSE!" they yelled, grinning.

"Hey, everyone," I said, smiling through the pain.

"Are you all right? You look like you're in pain," Olena said softly.

I waved my hand dismissively and winced again. "It's just"—pant—"contractions," I replied.

"OH MY GOD YOU'RE HAVING THE BABIES NOW!" they screamed in unison.

I nodded, smiling.

"Everyone, grab your bags. I'll call the airline," Olena told them in her no-nonsense voice. "We'll be there as soon as we can, Rose," she said before running off.

Viktoria turned the phone back toward herself. She was grinning like a fool. "I can't believe you're going to have them today!" she exclaimed.

"Believe me, we wouldn't be if it hadn't been for the bitch," I said acidly. I sighed. "But I'm glad they're coming. They're getting too hard for me to carry around," I joked.

"What exactly happened, Rose?" Viktoria asked.

"Well, we were just leaving the stables when they attacked us. Galina got her cronies to distract Dimitri so that she could get to me. Then . . . she punched me in the stomach. I was bleeding badly, and I didn't know if the babies would make it . . ." I shivered at the thought before continuing. "I've never felt a pain so horrible in my life. When Lissa and Christian picked us up, Lissa healed me. It took most of the pain away, and Dr. Lewis said I'll be okay to deliver naturally," I said, smiling at the end. I'd been so worried that I'd have to have an emergency C-section to save their lives.

"That's good . . . that you can deliver them naturally, I mean," she clarified. I heard Olena yelling for Viktoria in the background, and she sighed. "I'd better go. See you soon," she said.

"See ya, Tori."

She hung up, and I handed Adrian's phone back to him. I leaned back in my pillows, sighing. Dimitri stroked my cheek, and I smiled at him and laid my hand over his.

**~Eight Hours Later~**

As I sucked on an ice cube, I concentrated on getting through this. Contractions were coming faster and harder, and Dr. Lewis had told me that I was seven centimetres dilated. I was sweating like a pig, and I couldn't seem to get comfortable.

Dimitri laid a cold cloth on my forehead, and I smiled appreciatively at him.

"How are you feeling?" he asked softly.

"Uncomfortable," I admitted. "But I've given up on trying to get comfortable."

"I wish I could make it better . . ." he murmured, rubbing the back of my hand with his thumb.

I inhaled sharply; another contraction hit me. I squeezed Dimitri's hand.

"Breathe, Roza. It'll be over soon," he said soothingly.

I nodded, taking deep breaths.

I just wanted to get this over with.

**~Four Hours Later~**

**Dimitri POV**

Rose had fallen into an uncomfortable sleep, tossing and turning constantly. I wished that there was something that I could do for her, some way to make her pain go away.

"How is she?" Adrian asked in a whisper, slipping through the door. He and the others had gone to the cafeteria, and he was the first one back.

I sighed. "She's very restless. I think it's almost time," I replied, just as quietly.

He held up a coffee. "I brought this for you . . . I thought you might need it," he said, holding it out for me to take it.

I took it gratefully, smiling. "Thanks. It's exactly what I needed," I replied. I took a gulp of it, sighing happily.

The others slipped through the door moments later, careful as to not wake Rose up.

Twenty minutes later, Rose shot up in bed, clutching at her stomach. I rushed over to her side.

"Roza, are you okay?" I asked.

"Get the doctor," she panted.

Christian nodded to me and ran out the door.

"Breathe, Roza. Just breathe," I said, pulling her hair away from her face.

"Breathe . . . I can do that," she replied, breathing heavily.

Christian came back in, Dr. Lewis right behind him.

"What's the problem, Rose?" she asked.

"I need to push, Doc. They want out," Rose replied.

Dr. Lewis nodded. "Okay. I'll go get my team," she said quickly before hurrying back out the door.

She came back with two nurses. "Who's staying in the room?" she asked.

"Janine, Lissa and I," I replied. We'd already discussed it beforehand, so I knew exactly who would be there.

"Okay. Everyone else, out," she said.

Adrian kissed Rose on the forehead, Abe squeezed her hand, and Christian gave us a thumbs up. They all scuttled out the door.

Everything seemed to move in slow motion. Janine and Lissa held Rose's hands, and I held one of Rose's legs. We watched as she pushed, giving it all she had. She screamed occasionally.

And then, ten minutes later, I had one daughter.

Annika Viktoria Belikova.

In that instant, it felt like everything would be alright. The moment I heard her first cry and saw Rose's face as they placed her on her chest, I too began to cry.

And then, it was time to push again.

Eight minutes later, my second daughter was born.

Skylar Vasilisa Belikova.

Rose was absolutely glowing when they placed our second daughter on her chest. But I could see how much this was wearing on her, how tired she was getting.

Halfway through pushing again, she sunk back into the pillows.

"I can't do it," she whispered weakly.

"Yes, Roza, you can. Just think of how happy you'll be when you hold Aleksandr in your arms," I said.

With new determination, she pushed again, harder than before.

Ten minutes after Skylar had been born, I saw my son.

Aleksandr Mason Belikov.

His cries were weaker than those of our daughters, and he was smaller. He weighed four pounds seven ounces. Skylar was five pounds eight ounces, and Annika was five pounds ten ounces.

"Is he going to be okay?" I asked Dr. Lewis quietly.

"We have to check him. He might have to stay longer than the girls, since he's so small," she replied.

I nodded, taking it in.

I walked up and kissed Rose softly. "You did amazing, Roza," I whispered.

She smiled weakly. "Where are my babies?" she asked.

"Hold on," I replied.

The nurses were finishing swaddling Skylar, and they were already finished with Annika. I gently lifted Annika and held her for the first time.

Words can't describe the feeling of holding your child for the first time. They become the center of your world immediately, and you know that you'd rather die than let anything happen to them.

I carried her over to Rose, who held her arms out. I tucked her into Rose's hands, and she pulled her close.

"Hi, Annika," she whispered, tears sliding down her face. Annika was still crying, but she began to quiet as Rose whispered to her.

I walked over and held Skylar, rocking her slowly. She looked up at me with her little blue eyes, and it was as if she knew exactly who I was.

A tear slid down my face. "Hello, my sweet baby girl," I cooed, rubbing her soft little cheek. She made a little gurgling noise at me and smiled.

The moment I saw her smile, I felt on top of the world.

I gently tucked her into Rose's other arm.

"Dimitri, can you hand Annika to my mother?" she asked.

"Sure, Roza," I replied, reaching down to lift my oldest daughter. I turned and passed her to Janine, whose eyes were watering. She began to rock her, walking around the room.

I walked over to talk to Dr. Lewis.

"Is Aleksandr okay?" I asked.

"We'll have to monitor him for a while, but it's okay to pick him up. He's fully developed, just small."

Nodding, I reached down to pick up my son. He made no sound, just looked around with inquisitive blue eyes.

"When do their eyes change color?" I asked.

"They should change soon," she assured me. I thanked her and walked around with my son. He had a puff of dark brown hair, and it was so soft. The girls had curls of the same color, the same exact color of Rose's hair.

I handed him to Rose then took Skylar, handing her to Lissa.

"She's beautiful," Lissa whispered, rubbing Skylar's cheek with her finger. "They all are."

"Thank you," I said, smiling. I rubbed Skylar's little head, loving the feel of her soft curls. She smiled up at Lissa, who began to cry. "It makes me even more excited for when the twins are born," she added.

"You're going to do great," I told her, smiling. "I'll be right back, everyone. I'm going to get the others."

They all nodded. "Hurry back," Rose said. She handed me Aleksandr, and Janine handed me Annika.

Nodding, I walked out the door and made my way down the hall to the waiting area. I was surprised to find that my whole family was already there, grinning. The girls squealed when they saw the babies I held.

"Where's number three?" Karolina asked.

"Lissa's got her," I replied. "I've got Annika and Aleksandr."

Mama came forward and stood on her toes to kiss my cheek. "They're beautiful, Dimka," she said.

I held Annika out to her, and her whole face lit up. I made my way over to Abe and held Aleksandr out to him. He then did something I thought I'd never see him do: He began talking to him in baby talk.

Christian high-fived me. "I'm happy for you, man," he said, grinning.

"Thanks, Chris. Just wait till it's _your_ day," I told him.

He grinned even wider.

Viktoria hugged me tight. "I can't believe you're a dad, Dimka," she said.

"I know. I never thought that I would be. It's so surreal," I replied.

"Well, if anyone deserves to have children, it's you."

"Thank you, Vika. Now, come on, everyone. We can go see Rose and Skylar," I said. They all followed me to Rose's room.

"Where are Paul, Zoya and Raisa?" I asked before we walked in.

"Babushka has them in her room," Sonya replied.

Nodding, I opened the door.

Rose smiled widely when my family walked through the door. She was holding Skylar again.

"Hey, everyone," she said brightly.

"God, Rose. Only you would be so chipper after pushing three babies out," Christian said, grinning.

"Ah, shut up, Sparkles," she replied, grinning back.

"Good to see that everything's back to normal," Adrian commented, obviously referring to Rose and Christian's banter.

"I like it better this way anyway," Rose said, winking at Christian. She held Skylar out to him.

"Rose, I don't know about this," he said. "What if I drop her?"

"Don't be silly. You need practice, anyway," she replied.

Sighing, he reached out and cradled my daughter. A brilliant smile lit his face, and it was as if he couldn't get enough of it.

"You're a natural, Chris," she told him.

"Thank you," he replied. "God, you and Dimitri made some beautiful babies," he said, stroking Skylar's dark curls.

Rose and I grinned at each other. "Thank you," we replied in unison.

Mama held Annika back to me, and I held her close. She reached out a tiny dimpled hand toward me, and I let her grab my finger.

After a few minutes, I held her out to Viktoria.

"Hi, baby," she crooned. "I'm your aunt Viktoria."

Annika smiled and reached for Viktoria's long hair, gripping it firmly.

"It's too bad that Eddie and Mia couldn't be here . . . but they'll see them when they get back from Eddie's mom's house," Rose said, sighing.

"Did anyone call them and tell them yet?" Lissa asked.

Everyone shook their head no.

"Well, how about no one tells them? It'll surprise them when they get back," she said, grinning.

Rose clapped her hands together. "Good idea!" she exclaimed.

**~Rose POV~**

An hour and a half later, everyone but Dimitri had left. It was peaceful to just have him and the babies with me.

The doctor had shown me how to breastfeed, because the babies were getting hungry.

Annika began to cry, and I knew she wanted milk.

"Dimitri, can you hand her to me?" I asked.

"Sure, honey," he replied, rising from my bed to go and get her. He handed her to me, and I stroked her cheek.

"I know, baby. You're hungry," I murmured. I sighed. "Here goes nothing, I guess."

Feeding Annika was easy. She had no problem latching on, and she had a big appetite.

"Looks like she takes after you already," Dimitri joked.

I smacked him lightly on the arm, then handed Annika to him. He burped her for me, then handed her back. He got up to get the other two, and held one in each arm. I couldn't help but smile at them.

Dimitri caught me smiling. "What?" he asked, amused.

"Nothing. It's just that you look so perfect with them in your arms," I replied.

He grinned. "It's like they filled a place in my heart that I didn't even know was empty," he explained. "I would do anything, be anything for them just to keep them happy."

"I know how you feel," I said, holding Annika closer. Now that she'd eaten, she was starting to doze off. I stroked her dark brown curls soothingly, and she was soon fast asleep.

After I'd fed all of the babies, Dimitri and I fell asleep.

And I fell asleep knowing that February 23rd was and always will be one of the best days of my life.

**_See? I'm not that evil :) you guys should know by now that I throw lots of crap at you XD but do I ever disappoint? Nooooo. So have a little faith! I'd never hurt a baby, even if it's just a fictional one :P_**

**_I'm just so amazed with the response I've gotten to the past two chapters. You guys are honestly awesome! So keep showing me how awesome you are. Express your gratitude to me in a review :)_**

**_Until next time!_**

**_~Sar~_**


	35. Chapter 36

_**A/N: Hey guys! Here we are with chapter 31, a fluff-filled chapter ^_^ but for those action-lovers out there, don't worry, the action's coming soon! And, boy, is it good :) I've written up to chapter 35, and . . . wow, it makes me really sad to say this, but the story is almost done :'( it's gonna end somewhere around chapter 40 . . . which isn't that far away, really. It's just so sad!**_

_**Anyways . . . off of sad topics. I hope you all enjoy this extremely fluffy chapter :)**_

_**~I Heart Herondale Boys~**_

**CHAPTER **Thirty-One

Two days after I had the babies, the four of us were clear to leave. I was glad that Alek didn't have to stay longer; the doctors had been concerned that he'd have to be kept longer for observation. But no, my babies and I had been discharged with a clean bill of health. I'd been told to take it easy, though. As if.

It felt so good to bring them home. We could finally just relax, though I would miss the help of the nurses at the hospital.

Exhausted, I sunk down on the couch, Alek in my arms. He was such a good, quiet baby, unlike Annika, who was loud and demanding. Skylar was pretty much unpredictable.

"I'm just gonna rest my eyes," I murmured, my eyes sliding shut.

I felt Dimitri press his lips to my forehead. "Sleep for as long as you need to," he told me.

And just like that, I fell asleep, cuddling my baby boy.

~VA~

"Look at how cute that is," someone whispered.

"I know. It's adorable," another voice whispered back.

My eyes slowly opened, revealing Eddie and Mia. I yawned.

"I see you two are back," I said groggily.

"Yeah, we just got here," Mia told me, smiling. "We thought we'd come visit you guys first. I see you failed to tell us something important."

I yawned again, the smiled. "We wanted to surprise you," I replied.

"Well, it sure did surprise us when we walked in to find you with a baby in your arms," Eddie said amusedly. "I'm guessing this is Aleksandr?" he asked.

I nodded. "Yes, this is my precious boy," I replied. I held him out. "Do you guys wanna hold him?"

Mia nodded enthusiastically, and I tucked him into her arms.

I got up and stretched. "I'll be right back with the girls," I said, turning and walking up the stairs. I peeked into the babies' room and found Dimitri asleep in the rocking chair, still holding the girls. It was so cute!

I hated to wake him up, but I had to. I shook his shoulder gently, and his eyes flew open.

"What is it? Is something wrong?" he asked, immediately alert.

I laughed. "No, don't worry. It's just that Eddie and Mia are here, and I wanted to take the girls down," I replied.

He sighed with relief and stood, handing Skylar to me. She giggled at me and grabbed onto my finger, and I couldn't help but smile.

Dimitri and I carried them downstairs, where Mia and Eddie sat in the living room. Mia squealed when she saw the girls, and handed Alek to Eddie.

"This is Miss Skylar," I said, handing her to Mia.

"Look at the curls!" Mia exclaimed, grinning. "They're beautiful babies, guys."

I grinned. "Thanks," I replied. I poked Mia's arm. "I bet that the two of you would make some pretty babies," I said, winking.

Mia rolled her eyes but grinned, and Eddie laughed. "Not for a few years, Rosie," he replied.

I smiled sweetly. "If you weren't holding my infant son right now, I'd kick your ass for calling me Rosie."

Eddie paled and held Aleksandr closer.

There was a knock on my door before it opened, revealing Christian and Lissa.

Lissa was thirteen weeks pregnant now, and looking radiant. She had a small baby bump, but it was bigger than it would normally be at this stage of her pregnancy, since she was having a twins. It was still too early to be able to tell what the genders were, but she was hoping for one of each.

"Hey, guys," I said, grinning.

"Hey," they replied in unison. "How are you feeling?" Lissa asked me.

"Fine, you?"

"Well, I just puked my guts out, but I couldn't be better," she replied, grinning.

I laughed. "That's good."

Dimitri immediately handed Annika to Lissa.

Lissa rubbed her nose against Annika's, making her giggle.

"I love their outfits," Lissa gushed. I'd dressed Annika in a little pink onesie that said, "Mommy's Little Princess" and had a crown on it, Skylar was wearing a purple onesie with a puppy on it, and Aleksandr was wearing a green onesie with a fire truck on it.

"I know," I replied, grinning. "We have good taste in clothes, Liss."

She giggled. "Damn straight."

Eddie handed me Aleksandr then backed away quickly.

I laughed. "Edster, you know I wouldn't actually kick your ass. You're my brother, man."

He sighed with relief, while Christian's lips quirked into a smile. "Why would you kick his ass?" he asked.

"For calling me Rosie," I replied.

"I really don't see why you mind it so much. I mean, your mom is allowed to call you Rosie, so why can't we?"

"Because, it's special. It's what mom called me when I was little," I explained, holding my little Alley Cat closer. He was already sleeping soundly.

"Still. You know that we're never going to stop calling you Rosie, so you might as well just accept it," he said, smirking. I stuck my tongue out at him, then smiled sweetly.

"Well, it seems that my son needs his diaper changed. Since you insist on calling me Rosie, I insist that you change his diaper."

His face screwed up in disgust, but he took Aleksandr anyway and made his way up to the babies' room, making a face the whole time.

"Well played, Hathaway," Eddie said with a grin, high-fiving me.

"I know, right? I amaze myself sometimes."

Moments later, we heard Christian's exclamation of disgust. "Oh my God, it smells like death!"

We all burst out laughing, unable to help it.

"Just think, Sparky! You'll be doing that _all_ the time in a few months!" I called up to him. He groaned in response.

He came back down moments later with my newly changed son. He handed him to me, shivering.

"That was some scary shit. Literally," he said.

"Well, think of that next time you decide to call me Rosie. Next time anyone other than my mother calls me Rosie, they have to change a diaper. And not just like, a pee diaper, no. A nasty, poopy diaper," I said, smirking. Christian and Eddie paled.

"Rosieeeee, we're here!" Adrian called from the door.

I smacked my face and groaned. Looks like he'll be changing the next dirty diaper . . .

**_Haha XD poor Adrian . . ._**

**_Review and tell me what you thought. Depending on the amount of reviews I get, I might update tomorrow or the next day. But I want to take things slow with updates so that what I've written will last until after my exams, which are the 13-17 of June. After that, it's summer vacation, and I'm free to write whenever I want to :D but yeah, until then, I'm going to try to slow down updates since I won't be able to write much for a little bit :P_**

**_But yeah . . . review ^_^_**

**_~Sar~_**


	36. Chapter 37

_**A/N: Hey guys! Here we are with the next chapter :) I hope you guys enjoy it, it's pretty fluffy :P Enjoy the fluff while you can, though, peeps :) hehehehehehe!**_

_**Thanks so much to everyone who reveiwed :) you guys are awesome!**_

**CHAPTER** Thirty-Two

**One Week Later**

A week after we brought the triplets home, we set out for none other than St. Vladimir's Academy.

Eddie, Mia, Adrian, Viktoria, Lissa, Christian, Dimitri, the babies and I sat on the private jet for the queen, a.k.a. Lissa. Mom and Dad were staying behind, so they were going to look after the horses for Dimitri and me.

We were going to good ol' St. Vlad's because Lissa had to do some kind of boring queenly business there. I just wanted to see everyone there again, and so did everyone else. Viktoria had never been there before, so she tagged along. It was her March break anyway, so she wasn't missing school. We would only be staying for three days.

I was excited to be able to show the babies to Alberta. Even Kirova. Hell, even _Stan._ It'll be funny to see _his_ reaction.

I wanted to smell the familiar Montana air, see the place where I grew up again. I wanted to see the gym, where Dimitri and I had spent hours training, where our love grew and blossomed. And most of all see the cabin again. It was such a special place for Dimitri and me.

The flight went by relatively quick. I slept nearly the whole ride, except for when the babies were hungry and stuff like that.

I was grateful to land, because I was hungry and they didn't have much food on the jet. I knew that I could always count on the Academy's cafeteria for good food.

We got our things settled in our rooms in guest housing, and then I began seeking people out. I made sure that the babies were dressed warmly, since it was still pretty cold out. Then I fastened them into their stroller, and we were out.

Dimitri and I pushed the stroller together, since it was big and hard to manoeuvre.

We strolled through the Academy's grounds, stopping to say hello to some students that knew us.

We found Alberta watching over the kids in the cafeteria and eating her dinner. She looked up and smiled when she saw us coming, smiling even wider when she saw the babies.

"They're absolutely gorgeous, guys," she said, setting her food aside. "Can I hold one?"

"Of course. Take your pick," I replied, grinning.

She reached out and took Annika into her arms.

"Which one is this?" she asked.

Dimitri smiled. "That's Annika."

"Look at her eyes," Alberta said, smiling fondly at my daughter. The babies' eyes had changed from crystal blue to Dimitri's chocolate brown. "They're beautiful."

"I know. They're just like Dimitri's," I said, grinning.

"They have your hair though, Rose," she told me, stroking Annika's dark curls. "When did you have them?" she asked.

"Nine days ago," I replied.

"Wow, Rose. You look good for having three babies just over a week ago."

I smiled. "Thanks. It's nice to hear that, because I thought I'd look like a whale. It's good to know that I don't."

Shaking her head in amusement, she began to talk to Annika in baby talk.

I started looking around. I spotted Stan on the far side of the room and grinned.

"I'll be right back," I announced, reaching down to grab Aleksandr. He giggled and grabbed my hair, and I cradled him gently. I made my way over to Stan, who had his back turned to me.

"Oh Staaaaan," I said in a sing-song voice.

Stan froze, and began turning slowly.

I grinned and wiggled my fingers at him.

"For the love of God! What are you doing here?" he asked moodily.

"Now, Stan, I thought that we were past all of the animosity," I chastised him, shaking my finger.

"Yes, because I thought I'd never have to see you again." He did a double take. "Who's kid?" he asked.

"Stan, I'd like you to meet my son, Aleksandr Mason Belikov. His sisters are over with Dimitri and Alberta," I replied sweetly.

"You have _kids?_ What, did you cheat on Belikov?"

I gritted my teeth. "Yes, I have kids, no, I didn't cheat on him."

"Then, what? Did you adopt?"

"_No,_ they are mine and Dimitri's biological children."

Stan snorted. "That's not possible, Hathaway. You know it."

"Stan, you should know by now that I stretch the boundaries of possible."

He nodded. "You do. I guess I shouldn't be surprised at all."

I laughed. "No, you really shouldn't."

"How many do you have, anyway?" he asked, gesturing to Alek.

"Triplets. I had them last week."

"I see. . . . He sure is cute, Rose," he said, smiling at him.

"Would you like to hold him?" I asked.

"Really?"

I nodded. "Sure."

I tucked my son into his arms, and I had to admit that it was funny to see Stan holding a baby. But it was also cute to see up-tight Stan Alto cradling my son. I really never thought I'd see the day.

Stan followed me over to where Dimitri and Alberta sat. She now held Skylar, and Dimitri held Annika. They looked surprised to see Stan holding Aleksandr, but said nothing.

"These are my daughters. Dimitri has Annika and Alberta has Skylar," I told him, grinning.

"Wow, Rose. They're beautiful," Stan said honestly.

I grinned. "Thank you."

"You're welcome."

We chatted with Stan and Alberta for a while until they had to get back to their work. Alberta promised that she'd come see us again before we left.

As we were walking back to our room, I spotted Kirova talking to Lissa and Christian.

We walked over to them. Kirova looked . . . happy? . . . to see me.

"Hello Rose, Dimitri," she said, smiling. Whoa. She gestured to the triplets. "These must be the babies that Vasilisa was telling me so much about."

I nodded. "Our little angels," I replied.

"They're adorable," she said. "Is it alright if I hold one?"

"Of course."

She reached down and gently lifted Skylar from the stroller. Skylar giggled and smiled, reaching for Kirova's hair. She tugged on it, and Kirova smiled.

"What's her name?" she asked.

"Skylar," Dimitri replied.

"And the others?"

"The other two are Annika and Aleksandr."

"Such beautiful names for such beautiful children," she said, stroking Skylar's plump cheek. Skylar gurgled at her, smiling a gummy smile.

Kirova gently placed Skylar back in the stroller. "You know, Rose," she began, turning to me. "I never thought that you'd amount to much. I thought that you were just another delinquent student that would eventually end up as a blood whore. But I was wrong. You've done so much, come so far. I mean, you're the captain of the Royal Guard. And somehow, you've also managed to squeeze a family into your life. I couldn't be any prouder of you, Rose. Thank you for proving me wrong," she said sincerely.

I couldn't help the smile that spread across my face. "Glad to be of service," I replied breezily.

Kirova shook her head in amusement. "Same old Rose."

"You know that you wouldn't want it any other way," I said.

"You're right; I wouldn't."

~VA~

A few hours later, Lissa and I were on our way to Jill's room. Lissa wasn't happy about it, but I was making her go.

"Liss, she's your sister. You can't avoid her forever, you know," I said, casting her a sidelong glance.

"I can try," she grumbled, crossing her arms over her chest. "We just don't get along, Rose."

"No, because the two of you haven't tried. You just hold grudges against each other for things that are out of your control."

Lissa glared at me for a few seconds, and then sighed. "I can't help it, Rose. She just reminds me that my dad cheated on my mom every time I see her. I do want to try to build a relationship with her, but I don't know how to get past the resentment."

I patted her arm. "You'll figure it out, Liss. I'm sure that Jill would love to get to know you better."

I felt through the bond that she doubted it, but I knew that she was willing to try to work things out with Jill. She knew that I was right.

I knocked lightly on Jill's door.

"Coming," I heard her say from inside.

Her door unlocked and opened, revealing her in her pyjamas. Her light brown hair was slightly messy, like she'd been laying on it, and her jade green eyes were sleepy. She perked up instantly when she saw Lissa and I. She ushered us in, closing the door behind her.

Lissa sat on a comfy looking chair, while I just made myself comfortable on Jill's bed.

Jill sat down beside me. "What are you guys doing here? Not that I'm not happy about it, because I am. Just wondering, you know?"

I smiled. Same old Jill, babbling nervously. "Lissa had some business to do here, and the rest of us kinda tagged along."

She did a double take. "Whoa. Your belly's flat, and hers is round. What gives?" she asked.

I laughed. "I had the babies last week, and Liss is fifteen weeks pregnant," I explained.

"Wow! So, wait . . . does that mean that I'm going to be an aunt?"

Lissa nodded. "Sorry I didn't tell you before. Things were, um, hectic last time we saw each other. But yes, you're going to be an aunt to twins."

Jill's eyes sparkled. She turned back to me. "So where are your babies? Does Dimitri have them?"

I nodded. "Yes, they're sleeping soundly back in our room," I replied, smiling. "You can come over in the morning and see them if you'd like; Dimitri and I will be up."

"I'll totally be there!" she exclaimed, smiling happily. I gave her my room number so that she'd know where to go.

Things went silent. I eyed Lissa meaningfully, and she sighed. "So, Jill," she said, "how have things been lately?"

Jill shrugged. "Everyone's a lot nicer to me, now that I'm a princess. It makes me mad that people are so shallow, though. They never gave me a second glance before, but now, if I told them to jump backwards through a flaming hoop, they'd probably do it. I never know if people like me for me anymore."

Lissa's expression turned sympathetic. "I know what you mean. I lived my whole life like that. But you will know who your real friends are. You can just tell," she said, smiling at me. "And, Jill . . . I'm sorry that your whole life had to change just for me. And . . . I'm sorry I've been so horrible to you. You don't deserve it. If it's okay with you, I'd really like to start over."

Jill smiled like she'd just received a million dollars. "It's all I've wanted since I found out that you were my sister, Lissa."

Lissa opened her arms, and Jill hugged her tightly.

I wanted so badly to say "I told you so", but I didn't want to ruin the moment. I was so happy that they were finally going to work things out.

We sat there and talked for a while so that the sisters could catch up with each other.

When it was finally time to leave, we all promised to see each other the next day.

I walked Lissa to the room she shared with Christian. She'd been feeling much lighter since her epiphany in Jill's room.

"I'm proud of you, Liss," I told her.

She grinned. "You know, Jill's not too bad."

"I told you so!" I trilled, laughing.

Lissa rolled her eyes. "You know, for someone with three children, you're pretty childish."

"Yep," I replied, popping the 'p'.

She opened her door. "Goodnight, Rose," she said.

"Night, Liss. I'll see you in the morning."

Still smiling, she closed her door, and I made my way to my room.

When I got there, I found Dimitri trying to calm a crying Annika.

"Oh thank God," he said upon seeing me. "She's been crying for the past hour and a half. I've tried everything, and she won't stop."

"Give her to me," I told him. He handed her to me, and I saw her face all pinched up as she wailed. "Shh, honey. Mommy's here. Shh," I said soothingly, but she didn't stop. I wracked my brain for lullabies, and then I was hit with a distant memory of my mother singing me one.

"Baby mine, don't you cry. Baby mine, dry your eye. Lay your head close to my heart, never to part, baby of mine. Little one, when you play, don't you mind what you say. Let those eyes sparkle and shine, never a tear, baby of mine. If they knew sweet little you, they'd end up loving you too. All those same people who scold you, what they'd give just for the right to hold you; From your head to your toes, you're not much, goodness knows. But you're so precious to me, cute as can be, baby of mine." By the time I finished the song, Annika was sound asleep.

Dimitri looked at me, awestruck. "You are so amazing," he breathed. I placed Annika in the travel crib beside her brother and sister, who were also sound asleep. "Where did you hear that lullaby?"

"Mom used to sing it to me when I was little. There were a few others that she sang, but that was the freshest in my mind."

"It's beautiful," he told me, hugging me.

"I'll have to teach it to you sometime," I whispered.

He tipped my chin up and looked deeply into my eyes. His chocolate ones were shining with all of the love he held for me.

"I love you," he said clearly.

"I love you more," I replied, throwing my arms around his neck and pulling his face down to mine. I kissed him fiercely, knotting my fingers in his hair. He gently cupped my jaw as his lips moved in perfect sync with mine.

When we separated for air, he ran his thumb across my lower lip before pressing a soft kiss to my lips once more.

"You're all I could've ever wanted and more, Roza," he whispered.

"You're the best thing that's ever happened to me," I told him.

And so we continued in that perfect moment, not knowing how quickly things could go wrong.

**_Haha, I think I just hinted ominously at something :) _**

**_lol review, please :D They make me sooooooooooo happy!_**

**_Until next time!_**

**_~Sar~_**


	37. Chapter 38

_**A/N: Hey guys! Here we are with chapter 33 :) I like this chapter...kinda. hehehe :)**_

_**Thanks so much to everyone who reviewed! You guys are seriously awesome :D**_

_**~I Heart Herondale Boys~**_

**CHAPTER **Thirty-Three

**~One Day Later – In Rose's Dream~**

I stood in a lush, green field. Wildflowers bloomed all around me, and bees buzzed as they lazily flew from flower to flower, collecting nectar. The sky was a lovely shade of turquoise, and clouds puffed around lazily. It was probably the most beautiful place I'd ever seen, and I found myself wondering where I was.

"You're in the place between the world of the dead and the world of the living, Rose," came a voice from behind me, answering my thoughts. That voice . . . it was one I'd thought I'd never hear again.

I found myself turning slowly, willing it to be true. "Mase . . ." I breathed. There, right in front of me, stood seventeen year old, red-haired, blue eyed, freckly Mason Ashford.

He grinned. "Hi, Rose."

"MASON!" I yelled, tackling him and hugging him as hard as I could.

He chuckled. "Miss me?" he asked.

"You have no idea," I whispered.

We stood like that for a few minutes before he pulled away sighing. "As much as I wish this was a leisure visit, it isn't, Rose," he said, his crystal blue eyes apologetic.

I was confused. "Why are you here, then?" I asked.

He sighed again, running a hand through his fiery hair. "I'm here to warn you, Rose."

"About what?"

He began to pace. "Galina has been building up an army for a while now. She's been watching you everywhere you go. She knows that you're at St. Vladimir's, and she plans on attacking."

"No . . ." I breathed. "No, this can't be happening. That will mean that I've just endangered every single person here. I've endangered _children_," I said. I was struggling hard to keep myself from hyperventilating.

His expression turned to one of sympathy. "I wish I was wrong. But she's going to attack today. You need to warn everyone, so that they can prepare themselves. It's going to be bad."

I closed my eyes tightly, holding back tears. "Why can't she leave us the hell alone? She almost killed my babies! What else does she want? Why is she so hell-bent on killing Dimitri and I?" I asked in desperation.

Mason wrapped his arms around me. "Shh, Rose. . . . You have to pull yourself together. Where's the fierce Rose Hathaway that I knew and loved?" he asked.

"She's worn me down, Mase. I haven't felt like myself in forever, and it's all her fault."

"Well you need to be strong, Rose. This is the battle to end it all. It's her or you. And I don't want to see you here again anytime soon," he said seriously.

Slowly, I nodded. "Thank you, Mase. What did I ever do to deserve a friend like you?"

He grinned. "You must've done something pretty amazing," he joked. He pressed a kiss to my forehead. "Stay safe, Rose. I have to go now. I'll see you again someday."

"Bye, Mase," I whispered before waking up.

I looked out the window, and it was still light out. Barely, though.

I shook Dimitri awake. "Dimitri," I said. "Wake up."

"What's wrong?" he asked, rubbing his eyes.

"There's going to be an attack."

He instantly shot up. _"What?"_

"I just had a dream . . . it was Mason, Dimitri. Warning me about another attack. He said that Galina's been building an army, and she's going to attack later today. We have to warn everyone!"

His eyes widened. "Are you sure, Roza?"

I nodded. "Positive. We need to get to Alberta and tell her to prepare everyone."

He got out of bed and pulled pants and a shirt on. I quickly changed out of my pyjamas into sturdy jeans and a thermal shirt.

"What about the babies? We can't just leave them here," Dimitri pointed out.

"We'll take them to Liss and Christian's room! We just need to go _now_."

Nodding, he handed Aleksandr and Annika to me and took Skylar. They looked slightly perturbed to be woken up, but it had to be done.

We went next door and knocked. It took a few minutes before a bleary eyed Lissa opened the door. Seeing our faces, though, she instantly snapped awake.

"What's going on?" she asked.

"No time to explain; can you watch the babies for a bit?" I asked.

"Of course. But you have to tell me what's going on when you get back," she replied.

Nodding, we took the babies into her room and laid them on the bed. Christian was still sound asleep.

"We'll be back," Dimitri said to Lissa before we set out for Alberta's room.

Once we got there, Dimitri knocked on the door. It opened seconds later to Alberta, still in her pyjamas, but looking alert and ready for any threat, like any good guardian should.

"What is it?" she asked immediately.

"Can we come in?" Dimitri asked. "It's important."

"Of course," Alberta replied, opening the door wider so that we could get in.

"Now, explain to me why you're in my room so early in the morning," she said.

"There's going to be an attack," I said bluntly.

Alberta's expression turned to one of surprise, but she quickly controlled it. "How do you know?"

"Mason," I replied simply. She looked doubtful, but I quickly reminded her of the last time Mason warned me of an attack. "He wasn't wrong that time, and I know that he isn't wrong now."

"When is the attack going to be?" she asked.

"Sometime today. He didn't give me an exact time, but we should start preparing immediately. You should gather all of the guardians that you can, even the Moroi who are willing to help. We're going to need every person we can get."

Alberta nodded. "I'll call an emergency meeting. I'll go talk with Ellen. For now, you two should go back to your room. I'll come get you for the meeting."

Dimitri and I nodded. "Thank you for believing me, Alberta," I said.

"I've learned not to doubt you, Rose. You're a very special person."

With that, we split off. Dimitri and I headed straight to Lissa and Christian's room, where we called Eddie, Mia, Adrian, Viktoria and Jill.

Everyone was grumpy from not enough sleep, but once I explained what was going on, their moods immediately changed.

"I'm helping," Christian said immediately.

"Me too," Mia chimed in.

"You can count me in," Jill added.

I nodded. "Good. We'll need the extra help."

Lissa bit her lip. "I'm going to be a nervous wreck."

I squeezed her hand. "We'll be okay, Liss. Have faith."

She nodded, but I knew that she wasn't convinced.

And so we waited for Alberta to come and get us.

**_Hehe, I told you that the fluff wouldn't last long!_**

**_Next up: Epic battle scene! Who will live? Who will die? Only time will tell...dear lord, I'm evil!_**

**_Please review and tell me what you thought. I've had a really horrible day, so reviews will make it better :)_**

**_Until next time!_**

**_~Sar~_**


	38. Chapter 39

_**A/N: Hey guys :) Here we go...the long anticipated battle! Hehehe you guys are going to be absolutely pissed by the end of the chapter...just giving you all a heads up :P**_

_**OMG, I just finished reading the Hunger Games series. Holy crap, I never knew that books could be so amazing! I HEART PEETA :D :D :D :D :D**_

_**Anyways...enjoy this amazingly dreadful chapter :) haha I'm totally scaring you guys XD**_

_**~I Heart Herondale Boys~**_

**CHAPTER **Thirty-Four

There had been quite a big turnout of Moroi at the meeting who wanted to help. Many of them were fire users, so it was even better. I was feeling confident, but not over-confident. I didn't want to get cocky, because things always went wrong when you overshot your abilities.

Lissa and Adrian were going to watch the babies. I knew they were safe and in good hands, but I still couldn't help but worry. They were so young, and they couldn't lose Dimitri or I. They needed us.

The sun was setting, and as it lowered, my anxiety got worse. I had to focus on calming myself, and block the bond as much as I could. The last thing I needed was to be distracted by Lissa.

Once it had set completely, I couldn't stop fidgeting.

"Roza, you need to calm down. You'll be no good in a fight if your nerves are all frayed," he said quietly.

"I can't help it, Dimitri. I'm so terrified for everyone here," I replied, gesturing around me at all of the people gathered. So many people . . . people with families, people with lives. Lives that I was putting in danger.

Viktoria grinned at me in that easy way of hers. "Ro, chill. We can all handle ourselves. Everyone here is confident in their abilities."

"It doesn't stop me from worrying. Especially about you, Tori. You're my little sister, and I can't lose you."

She scoffed. "Rose, don't worry about me. Remember? I'm a Belikov." She flashed me a grin, and reluctantly, I grinned back.

"Okay, you've convinced me. Just be vigilant, okay?"

"Of course."

And so we waited.

~VA~

After an hour of waiting, people were starting to get doubtful. Alberta silenced them immediately, and it was nice to know how much she believed in me.

Twenty minutes later, nausea began to creep up within me.

"It's starting," I said. "Everyone, be ready, and watch your backs. Be careful."

I pulled Dimitri in for what could very possibly be our last kiss. It was quick, but it said more than words ever could.

He and I assumed point, with Eddie, Viktoria, Mia, Christian, Alberta and Jill closest to us.

"You ready to kick ass again, Chris?" I asked.

"Hell yeah," he replied, smirking. "Let's do this."

My nausea grew with each passing second, and it was extremely uncomfortable. But I ignored it as much as I could, grateful to have the warning.

_Be safe._ The message flitted through the bond, and I nearly smiled.

The last few moments before we made contact with the Strigoi were the most nerve-wracking of my life. But adrenaline surged within me, and I knew that I was ready. I grasped my stake firmly in my hand, the familiar weight of it comforting. I knew that I could take on whatever Galina threw at us.

When they finally reached us, I punched the closest one to me. It was a woman, and she looked to have been a dhampir before being turned. But she was no match for Christian and I. He lit her hair on fire, and in her panic, she didn't manage to block my stake. In one smooth motion, I slid it into her heart, her eyes widening. She fell to the ground, the life fading from her eyes.

I barely had time to blink before the next one was on me. He tackled me to the ground, his teeth nearing my neck.

"I don't think so," I grunted, throwing him off. I jumped on top of him, and before he could throw me off, I slid my stake into his heart. He screamed loudly, piercing my eardrums.

As I was getting up, a Strigoi pounced on my back, but I quickly flipped it forward. He pushed me back down though, and he was strong. Definitely a dhampir before being turned, and a good one at that.

"Chris!" I yelled as I tried to hold the Strigoi back from biting my neck.

"Jesus!" I heard Christian exclaim. The Strigoi's head exploded into flames and he screamed until I put him out of his misery.

It went on like that for a while, me staking Strigoi and Christian helping whenever it got a little too close. Galina's army really had been huge, and more Strigoi were still coming. But I saw no sign of the bitch herself. She was doing exactly what I knew she would: She stood behind her army like the coward she was and watched as they did her dirty work.

Both Christian and I were starting to get worn out, but there was no way in hell that either of us were going to give up. I tried not to look at the bodies around me, bodies of Strigoi _and_ dhampirs and Moroi. It was hard though; the Moroi and dhampirs were dead because of me. Lives snuffed out like a flame.

After what felt like hours of fighting, but in reality was probably only half an hour, I finally saw her.

She stood behind her army, smirking. All of the death around her clearly amused her. I gritted my teeth.

Suddenly, everything she'd ever done to me came to the forefront of my mind. And I was pissed. There might've been some spirit darkness mixed in with my anger, but either way, the bitch was gonna die.

Barely paying attention to the Strigoi I was staking, I began fighting my way through the horde. My sole focus was to get to her. I was like a horse that wore blinders, seeing only what was in front of me instead of being distracted by what I saw around me.

Except, she was gone.

Screams echoed through the night. I whirled around to find that it was Mia and Jill who had screamed. But it wasn't because they were hurt; they were staring in horror at the scene in front of them.

Galina was latched on to Viktoria's neck. She struggled weakly against her, but it was no use. She was losing her strength rapidly, her body growing more limp by the second.

My rage levels went through the roof. Like, bitch _please._ I was going to rip her fucking head off if she didn't remove her filthy teeth from Viktoria's neck.

"GET THE HELL OFF OF HER!" I shrieked, running full speed toward them. Dimitri heard me, and I saw him turn.

Horror was the most dominant emotion on his face. But mixed in with that horror was anger and revenge. He was in full badass warrior God-mode, and to anyone other than me, he was terrifying.

When Dimitri and I were a few feet away from Galina, she stopped drinking Viktoria's blood to smirk at us. Viktoria's blood covered her lips, and some even dripped down her chin, staining her blue shirt.

Roaring with rage, I sprang, my intention being ripping her head off.

Suddenly, I was stopped. Cold hands encircled my arms. I was being held by three Strigoi, while Dimitri was being held by five.

We both struggled, but we couldn't free ourselves. Their grips were like steel.

I screamed in frustration, trying once more to jerk out of their cold grip. It was no use.

And so we watched helplessly as Galina drank some more of Viktoria's blood. Her eyes were slowly falling closed, her expression one of bliss. Bile rose in my throat, and I fought to keep it down. Puking wouldn't help anything.

From then on, it was as if time slowed.

It was as if she was gently, tenderly holding Viktoria's neck between her hands, like Dimitri had many times when kissing or embracing me.

Only, Galina didn't kiss Viktoria.

Instead, with a sudden, sharp movement, she snapped her neck.

**_Ohhhhhh noooooooo!_**

**_Haha, I can already feel the hate mail XD hit me with your best shot, because I actually love hate mail...does that make me weird?_**

**_So review, and tell me how much you hate me. Hell, illustrate in detail what you'd do if you were standing beside me right now :) whatever floats your boat!_**

**_Until next time :)_**

**_~Sar~_**


	39. Chapter 40

_**A/N: Hey guys! Haha you guys didn't freak out as bad as I thought you would! Kinda disappointing...but whatever. I got lots of good reviews, and I was happy with them :) most of you guessed what will happen...am I that predictable? D:**_

_**Anyways, I hope you all enjoy this chapter! It's short, like the two before :P the next one's a LOT longer, and the one after that too :D**_

_**Enjoy!**_

_**~I Heart Herondale Boys~**_

**CHAPTER **Thirty-Five

Time stopped. Everything stopped.

Memories of Mason's gruesome death at the cold hands of Isaiah came flooding back, and this time I couldn't stop myself from puking.

Viktoria's eyes widened momentarily before her entire body went limp. Galina threw her to the side carelessly, rubbing her hands together with a bored expression on her face. She landed in a crumpled heap, never to move again.

A scream ripped its way from my throat. I heard it as if from a distance. I could barely process what was going on, what had happened.

I thought back to her words before the battle.

_Viktoria grinned at me in that easy way of hers. "Ro, chill. We can all handle ourselves. Everyone here is confident in their abilities."_

"_It doesn't stop me from worrying. Especially about you, Tori. You're my little sister, and I can't lose you."_

_She scoffed. "Rose, don't worry about me. Remember? I'm a Belikov." She flashed me a grin, and reluctantly, I grinned back._

"_Okay, you've convinced me. Just be vigilant, okay?"_

"_Of course."_

She lied.

I couldn't seem to stop screaming. Most of the time, it was just screams. But I screamed Viktoria's name over and over again, begging her to get up.

But she wouldn't.

Her head was twisted at an unnatural angle, her wide eyes blank and staring.

I was slightly aware of Dimitri screaming as well.

Suddenly, I realized that I had to get a grip on my emotions. Push them back until the job was done. I snapped out of the state that I was in.

There was hell to pay. This would end where it started one year ago.

I jerked out of the grip of the Strigoi that were holding me. In three swift movements, I'd staked them all.

I pounced at Galina knocking her down.

"You _bitch!_" I shrieked, clawing at her face.

She laughed. She actually had the nerve, the audacity to laugh!

"Poor, poor Viktoria. So young. And her death could've been avoided, had you come easily. But you had to play hard to get, so she had to die," she said amusedly. She threw me off and pounced, but I rolled out of the way.

A primal scream of battle escaped my lips as I sprang again. There was no way that the bitch was getting out of this alive.

She struck out at me, hitting me in the head. The world spun for a moment, but I fought the dizziness.

She raked her fingernails across my cheek. Pain exploded where she clawed me, and I cried out. This only made her laugh, which fuelled my anger.

"You're dead," I hissed, raking my stake across her chest. She screamed, her red eyes flaring with hatred. She ran at me, but I dodged.

She didn't see me coming as I rammed my stake through her back. I pulled it out before she died and turned her around so that she could see me.

"You should've never messed with me, bitch," I growled before staking her again.

She fell to the ground, and the undead life faded from her eyes.

Thoroughly exhausted, I crumpled to the ground. My head was pounding where she hit me and my cheek was sore, but I had to get to Viktoria.

I crawled over to her, pulling her onto my lap, and finally allowed myself to cry. Dimitri was still being attacked by Strigoi, but I knew that he could handle them. My sole focus was Viktoria, protecting her.

Tears fell in torrents down my face as I stroked Viktoria's light brown, gold streaked hair. I closed her eyelids, not wanting to see her staring blankly at me. Not wanting to see the accusation in her dead eyes.

"Why?" I whispered brokenly as I stared down at her, my tears dripping onto her face.

At some point, the fighting ceased, but I barely noticed.

When someone tried to pull me away from Viktoria, I punched them, not caring who it was. It turns out that it was Stan, but I still didn't care.

Dimitri sunk down beside me. His entire body shook with his sobs as he stared at his baby sister. I could see the loss clear in his eyes. Viktoria had been his world for so long, his little sister that he'd always protected. As I looked into his eyes, I knew that he blamed himself. Well, that made two of us.

I heard the sobs of Mia and Jill from somewhere nearby. I looked up to find Eddie, Mia, Christian and Jill standing beside us.

Christian and Eddie were crying hard. Mia sunk to the ground, unable to hold herself up anymore. Eddie fell beside her and held her as she sobbed.

"What's going on?"

I froze. It was Adrian, and he was close.

When he arrived at our little circle and saw Viktoria, his whole expression changed. He looked like he'd been hit by a bus.

"No . . ." he breathed, falling to his knees beside us.

"I'm sorry, Adrian. I'm sorry I couldn't protect her," I whispered, sobbing. A fresh torrent of tears fell from my eyes. "I tried, I really did."

"Everyone back away from her," he growled.

"But—" I tried to protest, but he cut me off.

"_EVERYONE GET THE FUCK AWAY FROM HER!"_ he screamed.

Shocked at his outburst, we all scooted away.

We watched as he took her limp hand in both of his and cried. "It's going to be okay, Viktoria. I'm going to fix you," he whispered. His eyes slid closed, and a look of intense concentration came over his face.

That's when I realized what he was trying to do.

"Adrian," I said softly, "She's gone."

"Shut up," he said, deathly quiet. His eyes didn't open, and his expression didn't change.

I let my guards down so that I could find out if Viktoria was even with us anymore.

Again, I was flooded with shapes, skulls, and people I didn't know.

"Get away," I hissed. "I want to see Viktoria."

The ghosts cleared away, leaving one sole ghost, standing beside her body, staring at it.

"Viktoria!" I cried. She looked at me and smiled, nodding. "You want this?" I asked. She nodded again, still smiling.

"She's here?" Dimitri asked.

I nodded. "She wants Adrian to bring her back," I replied, sniffling.

And so I watched with fascination as Viktoria's spirit slowly went back into her own body. I could see how much it was taking out of Adrian, who wasn't very good at healing in the first place. But his love for her burned strong and fuelled his power. He was determined to bring her back.

A sudden, blinding light shone from the two of them as Viktoria's spirit finished going back to her body. I shielded my eyes from the assault, wincing. Adrian flew backwards, unconscious.

A choking sound came from Viktoria, and then a sharp intake of breath. Her eyes flew open, and I knew how disoriented she was. I'd been in her position before.

I scrambled over to her and took her hand. "Viktoria! Oh my God, are you okay?" I asked hurriedly.

"What the hell happened? Everything was so dark . . . and my neck hurts," she mumbled. It was clear to me that she had no recognition of being a ghost, just like I hadn't.

"Tori, honey . . . Galina broke your neck. You died," I said gently.

Her eyes widened in horror. "What? How am I here?" Realization came over her suddenly as she saw Adrian's unconscious body sprawled in front of her. "Adrian!" she exclaimed. "Is he going to be okay?"

"He's going to be unconscious for a few days. It took a lot out of him," I replied.

"Why the hell did he do it?" she asked angrily.

"Because you wanted him to. I talked to your ghost, Tori."

And that was when she fainted.

**_This chapter was going to be a lot longer, but I decided to cut it there and make the next one longer :P_**

**_Tell me what you thought! Thank me for not permanently killing her :)_**

**_You know, I originally planned on killing Dimitri and bringing him back...I bet I would've got a lot more hate mail XD but I'm not that cruel :P_**

**_So, yeah, review! They'd really make my day, because I've had a really tough week. My grandfather died on Thursday, so I've been pretty down in the dumps...especially since the funeral was yesterday._**

**_~Sar~_**


	40. Chapter 41

_**A/N: Hey guys! Here we are, chapter 36! Pretty long chapter :D**_

_**Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed, especially to those who mentioned my grandad. I really appreciate how much you guys care about me :')**_

_**Enjoy the chapter!**_

_**~I Heart Herondale Boys~**_

**CHAPTER **Thirty-Six

A few hours later, Viktoria woke up again, crying. I hugged her tightly.

"I know," I whispered, stroking her hair.

"I just can't believe I died," she sobbed.

"I know, Tori. It's a lot to take in. But you've got me to help you understand what's happening with you now."

Sniffling, she nodded and buried her face in my chest. I held her as she cried, letting her get it all out.

"I'm scared, Rose," she whispered.

"It's okay, Viktoria. I'll teach you everything I know about being shadow-kissed."

She sniffled again. "Why did he do it?" she asked quietly.

"Because he loves you," I replied softly. "Viktoria . . . you didn't see his face. I did. He looked like he wanted to die along with you. Hell, I wanted to die along with you."

"What exactly happened? The last thing I remember is Galina pouncing, and then . . . nothing."

I grimaced. "Well . . . she was feeding off you. She almost drained you, Vik. Dimitri and I went for her, but a bunch of Strigoi grabbed us. We couldn't get away, and then . . . and then . . . she . . . God, Viktoria, she snapped your neck. After that . . . after you fell . . . I went ballistic." I laid a hand over the scratch marks on my cheeks, wincing. "But Galina's gone, and she's never coming back. I made sure of it."

I felt her nod. "Is . . . is Adrian okay?" she asked hesitantly.

"He's still asleep. He probably won't wake up for a few days," I replied.

"I just feel so bad . . . he shouldn't have had to use so much magic."

"Vik, he didn't do it because he _had_ to. He did it because he _wanted_ to. Because he wouldn't have been able to live a second without you. He was a wreck when he found you lying in my arms and saw that you weren't breathing. He honestly looked like he'd been hit by a truck."

Her eyes filled with tears again. "I can't even imagine what you guys must've felt . . . I died because I over-estimated my abilities. I got cocky."

"Well, at least you know not to make that mistake again," I joked, but then I became serious again. "Being shadow-kissed isn't easy, Tori. You have to really be strong to handle the darkness. It can really mess you up. And the ghosts. The first time I saw them, I blacked out. The nausea isn't pleasant, but it's useful. And the biggest thing is being inside Adrian's head. It's going to be really disorienting, because you literally _become_ him. It'll take some getting used to, but I know you can handle it."

She nodded, taking it all in. "Where's everyone else?" she asked.

"In my room. We didn't want to overwhelm you with a bunch of people, and they thought that I'd be the best choice to be here when you woke up, just so that I could talk to you about being shadow-kissed and all."

"That makes sense. . . . Rose, should I be able to like, _feel_ him right now?"

I shook my head. "The bond needs to establish itself. His thoughts and emotions will gradually start trickling through," I replied. I stood up, pulling her with me. "Now, come on. Dimitri has been worried sick, and I know this because Lissa is with him and I was bored waiting for you to get up so I took a little trip into her head," I said, flashing her a grin. The truth was, I was happy to have a shadow-kissed friend that I could mentor.

"Will you teach me to do that sometime?"

"Tori, I'll teach you everything I know. Most importantly, I'll teach you how to block the ghosts."

She nodded and hooked her arm through mine. She was still a little wobbly, but she wasn't about to fall over.

We left the infirmary and slowly made our way to my room. She stumbled and almost fell a few times, but my firm grip on her arm kept her vertical.

I knocked lightly on the door. It opened immediately, as if Dimitri had been waiting right in front of it. Which, knowing him, was exactly what he'd done.

"Vika," he breathed, wrapping his arms tightly around his baby sister. "God, Vika, don't ever do that to me again."

She grinned crookedly. "I'll do my best."

Lissa dragged Viktoria over to sit on the bed and talk to her, while Dimitri pulled me aside.

"How is she?" he asked quietly.

"She's dealing with it as best she can. She's scared, though. But she knows that she has me, and she can talk to me whenever she needs to," I replied, smiling.

He sighed with relief. "As long as she's okay."

"How's Adrian? Have you checked on him?" I asked.

"Still sound asleep. He really doesn't look like he'll be up for a few days."

I nodded. I'd been expecting that answer.

Dimitri reached up to lightly touch my cheek. I winced. "I'm proud of you, Roza. You fought so well out there. You pulled yourself together so quickly after Vika . . . after Vika died." He swallowed hard before continuing. "I couldn't have done it better myself." He promptly pressed gentle kisses to each scratch on my cheek, and I smiled. Among being clawed in the face and hit over the head, I'd sprained my wrist, scraped the hell out of my knees and elbows, and gotten a hell of a lot more cuts. Dimitri was pretty battered too, but it was nothing he couldn't handle.

"You did pretty good yourself, Comrade," I whispered, leaning my head on his chest and wrapping my arms around him.

I felt the rumble of his chest as he chuckled. "Student surpasses the teacher."

He leaned down and kissed me tenderly, running his fingers through my hair.

"Would you two stop making out in the corner? The two of you don't need any more babies anytime soon," Viktoria said, grinning.

I stuck my tongue out at her, while Dimitri laughed.

As if on cue, a wail sounded through the room. Surprisingly, it was Aleksandr, who rarely made a sound.

I scooped him up and held him to my chest, rocking him slowly. His crying quieted almost immediately, and I wiped the tears from his little face. His chocolate brown eyes stared up at me, still filled with tears.

"Did my little man miss his mommy?" I crooned. "It's okay now, my little Alley Cat. Mommy's here."

He gurgled and smiled at me, wrapping his little hand around my finger.

I rocked him until he fell asleep again, and then laid him back down beside Skylar and Annika.

I fell back on my bed, exhausted.

"I think we should all go and let Rose and Dimitri go to bed," Lissa said softly.

"Yeah, they look like they need it," Christian added.

I shot them a grateful look, and they smiled. Christian himself looked really tired, and I knew that it was from using so much of his magic.

We said goodbye to everyone as they walked out the door. I hugged Viktoria tightly and whispered in her ear that everything would be okay. She nodded and hugged me tighter.

Dimitri and I watched her leave. I was still worried about her, and I knew that he was too.

"She's strong, Dimitri. She can handle this, I know it," I said softly, certainly.

He sighed. "I know that she's strong. But she's my little sister, Roza. I wish I could just take it away, just like I wish I could with you. No one should have to deal with it," he murmured, closing the door.

"I know. But what's done is done, and we can't change the past. We should focus on the future instead of dwelling on the past."

He cracked a smile. "Since when did you become so wise?"

"Since I met an amazing man named Dimitri Belikov," I replied, grinning. "He taught me everything I know."

"Yes," he said, "_lots_ of things."

I laughed. "Since when did you become so . . . dirty?"

"Since I met a beautiful woman named Rosemarie Hathaway. She stole my heart and taught me a few things about loosening up and having fun. She also taught me to appreciate life and everything beautiful in the world."

"Like what?"

"Like your hair. It's long and silky, and one of my favourite things. Like your smile. So big and beautiful, sometimes sarcastic. Like your eyes. Dark and bottomless, I could lose myself in them. Like your laugh. Loud, yet melodic, it's contagious. Like our beautiful children."

I couldn't help but grin. "Have I ever told you how much I love you?"

"Maybe once or twice," he replied nonchalantly.

I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled his face down so that it was level with mine. I nibbled on his earlobe, and he shivered. "How about I show you?" I whispered seductively in his ear.

Needing no more encouragement than that, he kissed me fiercely, backing me up until my legs hit the bed and we tumbled back in a heap on top of the blankets.

**Viktoria POV**

As I made my way back to the room that I shared with Adrian, I thought about everything that happened.

I died.

_Died._

It was such a scary thought.

I unlocked the door and slipped in as quietly as I could. I slipped my shoes off and quickly changed out of my nasty, bloody, dirt-stained clothes. I jumped in the shower, letting it wash the dirt and blood from my skin and hair. It was refreshing, and the warm water did wonders for the tightness in my muscles.

I slipped out when the water ran cold, sighing. I wrapped a big, fluffy towel around myself and went hunting through my suitcase for something to wear. I grabbed some fuzzy pyjama bottoms and went over to Adrian's suitcase, pulling out a long sleeved shirt of his. It was comforting, and it smelled like him.

I slipped into bed as easily as I could, not wanting to jostle Adrian.

I snuggled myself close to him and stroked his soft, messy light brown hair. As I did, I couldn't stop the tears from falling. It was my fault that he was lying here, unconscious. If I hadn't have been stupid and cocky, we wouldn't be in this mess.

"I'm so sorry," I whispered, kissing his forehead.

After a while, when my eyelids began to droop, I snuggled myself even closer to him.

I fell asleep quickly to my very first dreamless sleep in months.

~VA~

I woke up to someone tracing patterns on my back.

_She's so beautiful when she sleeps._

My eyes flew open. Those weren't my thoughts.

I nearly wept with joy, however, because of what I saw before me.

Adrian was awake.

"Adrian," I choked out.

He smiled that lazy grin of his, and I was home. "Good morning, beautiful. How long was I out?" he asked casually.

"A day," I whispered. Suddenly, I smacked him. "You're a dumbass. Why the hell would you even risk bringing me back?" I asked angrily.

"Because I love you, and I can't live without you," he replied simply, pulling me closer. I could literally feel his love for me, and it was overwhelming.

"This is all so strange . . . I feel what you feel, and I hear what you think," I said, running my finger down his chest. "I guess I never really knew until now how much you loved me."

"Silly girl, you should've known," he told me, smiling crookedly. "And, damn. Now I can't think dirty thoughts about you."

I couldn't help laughing. "You can think whatever you want, and I'll pretend that I don't hear it."

"Sounds good to me," he replied. Suddenly, his face fell. "Viki, I want you to be honest with me. Are you mad that I made you shadow-kissed?" he asked, his emerald eyes searching my face.

I pursed my lips. "I'm not mad that you brought me back, Adrian. I'm only mad that you took that risk," I replied, looking steadily into his eyes.

He sighed, and I felt his relief.

He looked at me intensely, and I knew what he wanted.

He gently pressed his lips to mine, and they were so soft, as always. His hand rested on my lower back, and he pressed his body flush against mine. My hands went up to tangle in his messy brown hair and I kissed him harder, wrapping my leg around his waist.

"Viktoria," he breathed against my lips. "Let me make love to you."

I rested my forehead against his and stared deeply into his dark green eyes. I felt his love for me, and I knew what I wanted to do.

Very slowly, I nodded.

He crushed his lips to mine with a feverish intensity, and I knew that there was no going back. But this time, I didn't want to go back. I loved him, and he loved me. It was as simple as that.

I began pulling his shirt up, and we broke apart momentarily so that I could pull it over his head.

I admired the smooth, creamy skin of his chest and abs, running my fingers down it. He shivered and caught my wrist, that same intense look in his eyes.

He grabbed the hem of my shirt, his unspoken question hanging in the air. I nodded, letting him know that it was okay.

He slowly inched my shirt up until he pulled it completely off. A hungry expression was on his face as his eyes raked up and down my torso, which was clad in only a bra. He then slid his fingers into the waistband of my pants, his eyes never leaving mine as he slipped them off of me.

He kissed me deeply, his finger tracing along the edge of my bra. I moaned softly, my mouth opening to allow his tongue to slip in.

We moved so that he was hovering over me. His lips moved down my jaw, and electricity crackled between us. He continued down my neck to my collarbone, sucking gently on my skin. I moaned again, louder this time.

He kissed along the edge of my bra, and my fingers tightened in his hair. Shockwaves traveled down my spine at his touch.

I reached down and unbuttoned his jeans, and he stopped kissing me and moved so that I could pull them off of him. Now, we were both left in underwear, me in a bra and panties and him in silk boxers.

"What did I do to deserve you, Viktoria Belikova?" he asked in a whisper, pulling me close.

"The same thing that I must've done to deserve you, Adrian Ivashkov," I replied.

He kissed me softly, tenderly. His hand came up to unclasp my bra, and I let him slide it off my arms.

"God, Viktoria, you're so beautiful," he said softly. I felt his lust as his eyes traveled up and down my nearly bare body, and it mirrored my own.

I didn't reply, I simply crushed my lips to his, letting my love for him take control. He moaned at my intensity, tangling his fingers in my hair. I bit his lower lip and reached down to pull his boxers off, leaving him completely naked.

He wasted no time in pulling my panties off, and I loved the thrill of our naked bodies touching.

His eyes locked with mine. "Tell me if I hurt you, okay?"

I nodded.

"I love you," he said softly.

"I love you too."

Adrian was an extremely tender lover, and he was constantly worrying about hurting me. But once I'd assured him to his satisfaction, he let his body take over. I felt things I'd never felt before. And the fact that my first time was with Adrian made it so much better, even though I knew for a fact that it wasn't his first time. But, still. Losing my virginity to the man I loved was the best thing I could've ever hoped for.

He collapsed beside me and wrapped his arms around me, pressing a kiss to my temple. "That was amazing, Vik," he said, trailing his fingers up and down my arm.

"Mmm, yeah. I feel stupid for not doing this with you earlier," I replied, grinning.

We'd been lying there for a while when there was a knock on the door. Well, more like pounding.

"Tori, let me in! It's cold out here!" Rose's voice called from the other side of the door.

"I'm getting in the shower," Adrian whispered, standing up and making his way to the bathroom.

"Hold on, Rose!" I called back, pulling my panties, bra, and Adrian's shirt on. His shirt went to mid-thigh, so it was all good.

I opened the door to a grinning Rose. "Morning, Viktoria."

I grinned back. "Good morning to you too, Rose," I replied cheerfully.

She walked in and sat in a chair. "You look awfully cheerful this morning. My guess would have to be because Adrian obviously woke up, and you clearly have sex hair."

My cheeks burned with embarrassment. "Well . . ."

Rose laughed. "So he finally boinked you. It was about time, really," she joked. Her face turned serious. "You did use a condom, right?"

I froze, my eyes widening. "Oh shit," I mumbled. "Holy shit, oh my God . . ."

Rose's jaw dropped. "Oh my God, you're joking. Vik, tell me you're joking."

My hand went up to cover my mouth and I shook my head. I felt like I was going to be sick. How could we have been so stupid, so irresponsible?

"What do I do?" I whispered.

"Well, you could go get a morning after pill from the clinic, or you could just wait and see."

"I need to talk to Adrian about it," I replied, sinking down in the chair opposite her. I put my face in my hands. An amazing morning had quickly turned into a nightmare.

"If you do get pregnant, are you even ready for a baby?" she asked.

"I don't know, Rose. I mean, I love babies, but I really don't know."

Her expression was one of sympathy. "You do what you feel is right, Viktoria."

Adrian sauntered out of the bathroom moments later, a lazy grin on his face. "Good morning, Rose," he greeted her, leaning down to kiss her temple.

"Morning, Adrian. How are you feeling?" she asked.

"Good as new," he replied cheerfully.

"I'm surprised that you recovered so quickly; Lissa didn't wake up for three days. But maybe it was due to the fact that she was injured, and you weren't."

"At least not on the outside," he murmured. He sighed. "Listen, I'm really sorry for yelling at you yesterday. I just . . . completely lost it."

He yelled at her? I found myself wondering why.

"It's okay, Adrian. I understand. Had I been in your situation, I probably would've yelled at you too."

"I'm confused; why was there yelling?" I asked, looking back and forth from their faces.

"I told her to get away from you, and she tried to say something but then I just started yelling. I didn't care that she was crying, or that she was hurt. I was just so consumed in my loss of you," Adrian replied. "So, as my way of saying sorry . . ." He trailed off and rested his fingers against the marred skin of her cheek.

Pure joy flared up through the bond. It was like the most beautiful colors, the loveliest music, and everything else that was good in the world all rolled into one. It was amazing, and I finally knew why Lissa and Adrian loved using their magic so much.

I watched as the angry, puckered skin of her cheek mended. He allowed his magic to travel through her body, healing everything.

Rose shot him a disapproving look. "Adrian, you shouldn't have done that. You shouldn't risk the darkness, not when everything is so new to Viktoria."

Adrian looked sheepish. "Sorry. I forgot about that for a second."

Rose groaned and smacked her face, standing up. "Well, I need to get to Alberta so that we can sort out the _molnija_ ceremony, and you two need to talk. Come by my room later, okay?"

We nodded and walked her out. Rose shot me a meaningful look before turning and walking away.

I shut the door behind her, readying myself to talk to Adrian.

Before I could get a word out, his lips were on mine in a gentle kiss.

I hated to stop the kiss, but I really needed to talk to him.

"Adrian, stop," I mumbled against his lips.

He pulled away quickly, his deep green eyes searching my face. "What's wrong?" he asked.

I sighed. "Sit down. We need to talk."

"I never understand why people say that. It just causes unnecessary panic," he joked weakly, sinking down in the chair. His fitted black sweater looked amazing on him, and I just wanted to rip it off and—

_God, Viktoria, get a grip!_ I thought angrily. This was serious!

I reached out and took his hand in mine, grasping it tightly. "Adrian . . . what we did this morning was amazing. Totally, completely amazing. But we overlooked something important . . . we forgot."

He was puzzled for a moment before realization dawned on him. I heard his racing thoughts.

_Oh my God, what if she's pregnant?_

_Are we ready for a baby?_

_SWEET JESUS, DIMITRI'S GOING TO KILL ME IF I GOT HIS BABY SISTER PREGNANT!_

"Adrian, slow down. Your thoughts are giving me whiplash."

"Sorry. But, what are we going to do if you're . . . pregnant?" He hesitated, fumbling over the word.

I sighed. "I don't know. I mean, we'll just have to wait and see, I guess."

He looked ashamed. "Viki, I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have been so stupid as to forget a condom. I've put you in a bad position," he said morosely, averting his eyes.

I gently touched his cheek. "Hey. Look at me." He did. "It's not only your fault. I forgot too. And, well, whatever happens, happens. And, hey. At least if I do get pregnant, then I know that it's because of the man I love and I shared something phenomenal. Got it?"

A smile tugged at the corners of his lips. "God, Vik. What did I ever do to deserve you?"

I grinned back. "We've already been over this, Mr. Ivashkov," I said bemusedly.

"I know, but I still just can't understand it." He kissed me softly, and I sighed in content. He reached up to wind his fingers in my hair, and I wrapped my arms around him, enjoying the comfort of his strong arms around me.

I'd found my savior.

**_Awww! Cute little Adri/Viki scene :')_**

**_Favourite parts, anyone?_**

**_Please review and let me know your thoughts!_**

**_Until next time!_**

**_~Sar_**


	41. Chapter 42

_**A/N: Hey guys! I'm kind of in panic mode right now :S I cracked my computer screen, and it's not looking too good for me. my dad said he isn't getting me a new one, so I'm stuck with a bad screen that makes it hard to see what I'm writing in some places. Lucky for you guys (depending on how you look at it) I'm finishing up the very last chapter of this story! Chapter 40, just like I said :) I'm honestly so so sad to see it end, but I'm also so, so proud of myself. I never in a million years thought I'd ever make it this far! I feel so accomplished that I want to cry :') It's been a pretty bumpy ride, n'est ce pas? LOL but anyways, enough with the heavy and on with the chapter!**_

_**Disclaimer: I kinda just realized that I haven't done one of these in a while XD but you all know that I am not Richelle Mead, because my name is Sarah and I'm just a super-fan :P I wish I was her, but it's kinda impossible to become someone else XD**_

_**On with the chapter!**_

_**~I Heart Herondale Boys~**_

**CHAPTER **Thirty-Seven

**Rose POV**

As I walked to the guardian building, I thought about Viktoria and Adrian's little predicament. I wondered how he was taking it.

If Adrian got Viktoria pregnant, he could kiss his balls goodbye because Dimitri would definitely rip them off. It amused me how protective he was of his little sister, but it was still cute.

I entered the guardian building and made my way to Alberta's office and knocked on the door.

"Come in," she called, and I slipped in and sat down across from her. "Good morning, Rose," she said cheerfully, smiling.

"Good morning, Alberta," I replied, leaning back in the chair.

"How are Viktoria and Adrian?" she asked, and I saw genuine concern in her eyes.

I grinned. "Good as new. Viktoria is handling being shadow-kissed extremely well, and Adrian woke up this morning, which is quite fast as far as these things go."

"That's good. How is everyone else?"

"Everyone's fine. I'm good as new, because Adrian healed me." I scowled, still angry that he did that. Viktoria's mind was very fragile at the moment, and the last thing she needed was darkness when she still didn't understand how to fight it.

"And I'm guessing that by the look on your face, you aren't happy about it."

"Viktoria is extremely new to this. She doesn't know how to fight the darkness yet. He shouldn't have risked it, not when it would be so easy to send her over the edge." I shivered, remembering the few times I'd been gripped by spirit's darkness.

Alberta nodded in agreement. "Anyway," she said, effectively changing the subject. "We need to get the _molnija_ ceremony sorted. Do you know how many kills you made?"

"Galina, and, well, I have no idea. It had to have been at least ten," I replied, sighing.

"Well, we'll give you a _molnija_ for Galina, and then a _zvezda_ for the others, since you don't know. Make sure you send Viktoria, Edison and Dimitri in so that I can speak to them about their kills as well," she said, brushing her short, graying hair away from her face.

I nodded. "Is that all?" I asked.

She nodded. "You're free to go. Try to enjoy the little time here that you have left."

I forced a smile. I wasn't really sure if I'd be able to enjoy myself here anymore, not after what happened the day before. "I will."

She smiled at me. "And make sure you bring those babies to see me again."

This time, the grin wasn't forced. "Of course."

With that, I left her office and made my way to Eddie and Mia's room, knocking on the door.

A bleary-eyed Eddie answered, his hair mussed from sleep. "Good morning, Rose," he said, yawning.

"Ed, it's the afternoon," I replied bemusedly. He waved his hand dismissively at me, and I rolled my eyes. "Anyway, I came to tell you that you need to go talk to Alberta about your kills yesterday as soon as possible. The _molnija_ ceremony is tonight."

He sighed. "I guess I'd better go now," he said, sighing again. He moved to close the door behind him, but my hand on his arm stopped him.

"Eddie, you're only wearing boxers and a tee-shirt."

He looked down as if realizing it for the first time. "Jesus," he muttered, turning back to go in his room.

I walked back to my own room, thoroughly amused.

I found it completely empty, save for a note on my pillow.

_Dear Roza,_

_Lissa and Christian are watching the triplets. I figured that you'd like to have a day of relaxation, so I've prepared a special picnic. Meet me at the lake on the far side of campus, and I'll be waiting._

_Love, Dimitri_

I clutched the note to my chest, giggling and swooning like a schoolgirl. I changed out of my boring guardian getup and into black jeans, a black, grey and white button-up plaid shirt and my Converse low-tops. I pulled on my black pea-coat and pink knit beanie and set out.

The walk to the lake was nice and quiet, the winter air cool, but not cold.

I found Dimitri with his back turned to me, gazing at the still frozen lake. My shoes crunched softly in the snow, so I knew that he heard me coming, but he didn't turn.

I wrapped my arms around him from behind. "Yo, D."

I felt the rumble in his chest as he chuckled. "Hello, Roza." He turned, still in my arms. He did a double take. "Your face . . . it isn't scratched anymore."

I shook my head. "Adrian fixed me up," I replied.

His eyebrow shot up. "Adrian's awake?"

I nodded. I decided not to tell him that Viktoria could possibly get pregnant. I didn't need him going off and killing Adrian. "Awake and moving around. He's perfectly fine now."

"Wow . . . that was fast."

"I know. But my theory is that he was at full power when he healed her, unlike Lissa when she healed me. She was all battered, while he was completely fine."

"Makes sense," he agreed. "I'll have to thank Adrian for healing you."

I hugged him tighter, sighing. "He shouldn't have, really. Tori doesn't know how to deal with darkness yet."

"She'll learn through experience, Roza. Just like you did. She's lucky that she even has a mentor, unlike you, who fumbled your way through everything, never quite knowing what would happen."

"I guess you're right . . . but I still worry about her. I know how hard being shadow-kissed is, and I wouldn't wish it on anyone."

"I know. But, erase it from your mind for now. It's time to eat."

Those last few words shut me up immediately. Dimitri led me over to a picnic table that he'd cleared off, and then motioned for me to sit down. He sat across from me and pulled a thermos filled with hot chocolate from a picnic basket, two mugs, and some chocolate glazed doughnuts. I had to stop myself from drooling. He poured the hot chocolate into the mugs, then handed me one.

"Dig in," he said, and I needed no more encouragement than that. I ate three whole doughnuts in record time, and finished my hot chocolate quickly.

Once we'd both finished, he reached down into a bag beside him and pulled out skates.

A smile tugged at the corners of my lips. We were going skating!

He handed me mine, and I pulled my Converse off and pulled them on. Once I'd laced them, I hooked my arm through Dimitri's and we made our way through the snow.

"Don't worry, I already tested the ice. It's still extremely sturdy," he assured me.

"You thought of everything, didn't you?" I asked, amused.

"Just being thorough," he replied breezily.

I rolled my eyes and stepped onto the ice, letting my body remember how to skate. I was wobbly from not skating for years, and I fell a few times. Dimitri, of course, glided smoothly over the ice like a pro.

I scowled at him. "You just _have _to be good at everything, don't you?" I asked, pulling myself up and wiping the snow from my jeans.

He chuckled and circled around me, skating backwards. "Well, since I lived in an artic wasteland"—he grinned in amusement—"I've had a lot of practice."

I stuck my tongue out at him and skated away, still slightly wobbly but not as bad.

In a flash, he was in front of me, skating fast. With a grin, he turned and skated fast all around the lake, showing off.

I heard the crack at the same time he did.

My eyes widened, and I opened my mouth to tell him to skate away when the ice fractured even more, trapping him.

I saw the look of determination on his face, and I knew that he was going to try to get past it without the ice cracking. It was either that, or be a sitting duck. Neither option was appealing, but at least he could try to get away.

He swept forward, but it was too late.

The ice cracked completely, and he tumbled into the frigid water.

"DIMITRI!" I yelled, my scream ringing through the whole forest. I skated over to the hole as fast as I could and fell to my knees, making sure to avoid any more cracks.

I saw Dimitri's hand pop up, but that was all because the rest of him was trapped under a large chunk of ice.

I leaned over and pushed the ice off him, careful not to fall in. He popped up to the surface, unconscious.

Fighting hard not to cry out, I gritted my teeth and pulled him out of the water.

I pressed my ear to his chest to listen for his heartbeat. It was there, but faint. I needed to get the water out of his airways.

I did compressions on his chest until he coughed up the water. His eyes opened slightly, and he was shivering violently.

"R-r-roza," he gasped, his teeth chattering so hard that I thought they would break.

"Hang on, Dimitri. I'll get some help," I said, fighting back tears.

"I'm s-so c-c-cold," he mumbled.

"I know, honey." I pulled out my phone and hastily dialled Christian's number, because I knew that he could use his magic to help Dimitri.

He answered on the third ring.

"Hey Rosie. What's up?" he asked cheerfully.

"No time. I need you to come to the lake on the far side of campus _immediately_."

"What's wrong?"

"Dimitri and I were skating, and he fell through the ice. I need you to use your magic. _I'm scared_, Christian," I told him, emotion choking my voice.

"I'll be right there," he replied immediately before hanging up.

I pulled my coat off and laid it over Dimitri, who was turning blue with cold. I removed my hat and put it on his head, covering his ears. I took his freezing hands in mine, trying to warm him.

He shivered violently when my warm hands touched his cold ones.

I laid beside him, pressing my body close to his, trying to lend body warmth. I pressed my cheek against his, making him shiver again.

Christian arrived moments later, his expression grim as he took in Dimitri's frozen appearance.

"Back away, Rose. This is gonna be hot," he said, cracking his knuckles.

I scooted away from Dimitri and let Christian do his work.

A look of intense concentration came over him, and I could feel the heat radiating off him and Dimitri in waves.

Dimitri's breath came out in a hiss at the sudden warmth. I watched as he gradually grew warmer, but Christian was rapidly weakening. He clearly wasn't fully recovered from all of the magic he'd wielded the day before.

He collapsed on the ice, breathing hard. "I can't," he gasped out, panting hard. "I don't have the energy."

I crawled over to Dimitri, who was still freezing.

I had to do something, or Dimitri would go hypothermic.

And then, suddenly, I knew exactly what I needed to do.

I crawled over to Christian and propped him up, since he'd fallen over in his exhaustion.

I pulled my hair away from my neck. "Chris, drink. I need you to keep going, and this is the only way to do it because I can't drag you and Dimitri both back to the dorms," I said urgently.

He groaned. "No, Rose. I can't do that to you. You're my sister."

"Goddammit, Christian! Forget that right now! Dimitri needs this, and I'm prepared to do it. It's not like I haven't done it before," I reasoned.

Indecision became the most prominent emotion on his face.

Growling in frustration, I dug my fingernail deeply into my neck, drawing blood. The scent was too much for him to resist, and he hungrily dug his sharp incisors into my neck. The initial pain wasn't bad, and then pure bliss flooded my system.

When he finished, he gently laid me on the ice, muttering about how stupid I was for making him do it.

I felt the heat again, and even in my drugged mind, I knew that I'd done the right thing.

I'd been off in la-la-land for around ten minutes when the heat stopped.

Dimitri and Christian hovered over me, concern clear on their faces.

"I like purple. Purple is a sexy color. I want a purple pony," I rambled, thinking it was funny in my drugged mind. "Oooh or a green pony!"

Dimitri scooped me up into his arms, seemingly recovered. He was still cold, though; I could feel it through the thin fabric of my shirt.

"You smell good. Like . . . happiness," I told him matter-of-factly.

"Thanks, I guess," he replied, still concerned.

We must've arrived at Lissa and Christian's room, because I heard Lissa's voice as she freaked out over me.

"What the hell happened to her?" she asked angrily. That was when she noticed the bitemarks, and she shot an accusatory glare at Christian. "How could you?" she whispered. "You know what? I don't wanna hear it!" she exclaimed, running into the bathroom and slamming the door behind her.

I giggled. "Somebody's got a bit of a temper."

Dimitri laid me down on the bed and grabbed the first aid kit from the wall. He gently cleaned the wounds before bandaging them.

"So, Dr. Belikov, what's the diagnosis?" I asked, giggling.

"Sleep, honey. You'll feel better soon." He stroked my cheek and kissed my forehead.

"Tell me a story!" I squealed.

He sighed, but nodded. "There once was a beautiful princess. She was funny, kind, and loved by everyone. Especially her knight. Secretly, they met at night and shared their love for each other, when they wouldn't be caught and judged by everyone.

"One day, the princess got tired of hiding her love for her knight. She went out on her balcony, her knight by her side, and announced her love for him to all of her subjects. They were appalled that a beautiful princess such as her would love anyone who wasn't royalty.

"In the cover of night, she and her knight, as well as a few trusted friends, fled the castle. They went so far away that no one would ever find them, and started a family. They lived a peaceful life for many years, until they were found.

"Her knight fought valiantly for her and slayed everyone in his path, determined to keep his beautiful princess safe. And keep her safe he did.

"After that, they lived the rest of their lives in peace, never to be disturbed again."

My eyes were drifting closed. "That was a nice story," I said, yawning.

"Sleep," he murmured, and I obliged.

**Dimitri POV**

Rose drifted off to sleep, still high on endorphins. I sighed.

Christian was at the bathroom door, trying to coax Lissa out. But she wouldn't hear of it; she was pissed at him about Rose, her anger amplified by hormones.

Pressing a kiss to Rose's head, I stood up and joined Christian at the door.

"Lissa, come out and let us explain the situation," I said gently.

I heard her huff. "No! You let him do it! I'm not listening to you!"

Christian sighed. "Liss, you don't even know what happened. Come on, babe. You're being irrational."

"Oh shit," I muttered under my breath. _Never_ tell a pregnant woman that she's being irrational. I glanced at him. "You just dug yourself a very deep hole," I told him.

"_IRRATIONAL? I'M NOT BEING IRRATIONAL! MY BEST FRIEND IS LYING ON MY BED, DRUGGED OUT OF HER MIND AND YOU TELL ME THAT I'M BEING IRRATIONAL?" _she shrieked. Her voice reached a pitch that I never knew existed, and it clawed at my eardrums.

There was a knock on the door, and I went to open it.

Viktoria and Adrian stood outside, peering around.

"What the hell is all of the screaming for? I think I'm half deaf," Viktoria muttered.

I sighed. "Come see for yourself," I said, stepping aside so that they could get in.

"What happened to Rose?" Adrian asked upon seeing her passed out with a bandaged neck.

"Chris and I will explain once we get Lissa out of the bathroom," I replied.

Adrian cracked his knuckles, grinning. "Leave it to me," he said, striding over to the bathroom door and pounding on it. "Vasilisa Sabina Rhea Dragomir, get your ass out here so that we can all hear the explanation!"

We all heard the sound of something dropping, and then the door flew open to Lissa, whose face was streaked with tears.

"Adrian!" she shrieked, hugging him tightly.

He chuckled. "Hey, cousin. Worried about me?" he asked, smirking.

"Of course! I know exactly what it's like to do what you did . . . how are you awake already?"

He shrugged. "No clue. Guess I'm special."

She rolled her eyes and strode over to Rose, not looking at Christian the whole time.

"Explain," she said, her voice steely.

"Rose and I were skating on the lake. Before she got there, I tested the ice to make sure that it was sturdy. It seemed completely fine. We ate, and then skated around for a bit. I'll admit that I was showing off . . ." I trailed off, embarrassed. "Anyways, the ice started cracking, and I couldn't get away fast enough. I fell in, and God, was it cold. I got trapped under a piece of ice, and I couldn't get it off because my muscles were locking up. The next thing I remember was coughing up a bunch of water with Rose hovering over me. I was freezing. She took her jacket off to cover me, called Christian, then huddled herself close to me to keep me warm." I nodded to Christian, letting him know to continue.

"When I got there, Dimitri was blue. I told Rose to back away, and then I focused heat on him, warming him up from his very core. But I was still really weak after yesterday, and I had to stop. But Dimitri wasn't even halfway warmed up at that point, and he could've easily gotten hypothermia. Rose sat me up and told me to drink. I tried to tell her no, but she wouldn't listen. She dug her nails into her neck, and the smell of blood was too much for me. Without really meaning to, I drank. When I finished, I kept warming Dimitri up, and then we brought Rose here. She was going on about purple and green ponies for a while there. But, Liss, I swear that I didn't want to drink her blood. I'd never do that to her purposely, you know that. She's my sister," he finished, his eyes meeting Lissa's.

Lissa swallowed hard. "I'm sorry, I should've believed in you . . . please forgive me," she wailed.

He opened his arms to her and she buried her face in his chest, sobbing. I sent a sympathetic look his way, knowing exactly how it was to have a hormonal pregnant woman around.

"Want me to fix her up?" Adrian asked quietly.

"Discuss it with Viktoria; she's the one who will have to deal with the consequences," I replied.

"Do it," Viktoria said immediately. "I can't be afraid of what will happen; I'll need to deal with it sometime."

Sighing, Adrian walked over to the bed, sat beside the still-sleeping Rose, and laid his hand on her neck. His eyes closed, and I watched as he and Viktoria smiled at the same time.

Adrian removed his hand, pulling the bandages off. The skin of Rose's neck was smooth and unblemished, showing no sign that she'd been bitten, which was good, since the _molnija_ ceremony was tonight.

Rose woke up moments later, rubbing her eyes.

She yawned. "I feel funny," she said groggily.

"It's the after-effects of the endorphins, Roza," I said softly, stroking her cheek.

She groaned. "Ugh, my neck's gonna be nasty at the ceremony."

Adrian grinned. "No, it's not," he said.

"You didn't heal me again, did you?" she asked.

"Well . . ."

"Adrian! Honestly, we talked about this."

"Ro, I gave him permission. It's okay, just chill out," Viktoria told her, rolling her eyes.

Rose threw up her hands. "Fine! Go crazy! See how much you like it, because I'm done trying to help," she growled before stalking out of the room.

I sighed. "I'll go after her," I muttered. "Roza!" I called.

I caught her by the arm and jerked her around so that she was facing me.

"She doesn't understand!" she exclaimed angrily. "She doesn't understand how scary it is to completely lose control of yourself, to go crazy like that! _She doesn't get it!_" she cried, collapsing into me, sobbing.

I stroked her hair soothingly. "Roza, you need to let her do things her own way. She'll never learn if she doesn't make mistakes. She has to figure out some things on her own. You can't dictate her every move, you should know that by now. She does things the way she wants to, just like you," I said quietly.

"I'm just so scared for her, Dimitri. I know the consequences of being shadow-kissed. I don't want her to have to deal with it," she whispered into my chest.

"I know, honey. Just trust her to make her own decisions."

Sniffling, she nodded and wiped her eyes. I kissed her softly and hugged her tight.

"I'd better go apologize," she said. "You have to go talk to Alberta about your kills so that she can finish sorting out the _molnija_ ceremony."

I nodded. "See you in a bit, Roza."

"Bye," she whispered, and I watched her walk away.

**_How was it? Three more chappies to go :( I really wanna get to over 700 reviews by the time this story is over, so could you guys help me out? I know how awesome you all are :D it takes a few seconds and then it's done. So please, take some time to write a little something :)_**

**_Until next time!_**

**_~Sar_**


	42. Chapter 43

_**A/N: Well, I obviously love you guys, since I'm updating so soon XD my screen is buggingme sooooo much right now :( but it's all good, I'll manage :P**_

_**BREAKING NEWS: I'VE FINISHED THIS STORY AND STARTED WRITING THE SEQUEL! Yes, that's right, I came up with an idea!You guys are probably going to hate me for it, but that's cool. It's gonna be pretty damn awesome :) if you guys aren't happy with me for it, thentoo bad for you XD I'm doing what my heart is telling me.**_

_**Anyways, thanks tothe people who reviewed chapter 37 :) you guys are awesome! Only two more chapters after this one to go!**_

_**Enjoy!**_

_**~I Heart Herondale Boys~**_

**CHAPTER **Thirty-Eight

**RPOV**

I sat in the chair, wincing as the tattooist's needle moved across the back of my neck.

No matter how many times I got a tattoo, I'd never get used to the needle's bite.

But I sat there silently through the whole thing, as I got my _molnija _and _zvezda_ marks.

After I was done, I watched as the others got their marks. Viktoria received two _molnija_ marks, as well as a _zvezda_ for being in the battle. Dimitri got three _molnija_ marks and another _zvezda_, and Eddie got two and a _zvezda_.

I was grateful to get back to the babies. I hadn't had much time with them in the past couple of days, and it was hard.

Annika stared up at me, her chocolaty eyes sparkling as she gurgled happily at me.

"How's Momma's princess?" I asked in a coo, tickling her chubby little cheek.

She giggled at me and smiled, showing her gums.

I secured her in one arm and reached down with the other to pull Skylar into my arms as well.

"Mommy loves you, my little princesses," I whispered, kissing them both on the head. I stroked their dark curls lovingly and sank down on the bed.

Dimitri joined us, cradling Aleks in his arms. Our three perfect babies gazed up at us, giggling and smiling.

"You three are the cutest little babies," I crooned.

"Sing them that lullaby again, Roza," Dimitri said softly.

I cleared my throat and began.

_Baby mine, don't you cry.  
Baby mine, dry your eye.  
Lay your head close to my heart,  
Never to part, baby of mine._

_Little one, when you play,  
Don't you mind what you say.  
Let those eyes sparkle and shine,  
Never a tear, baby of mine._

_If they knew sweet little you,  
They'd end up loving you too.  
All those same people who scold you,  
What they'd give just for the right to hold you._

_From your head to your toes,  
You're not much; goodness knows.  
But you're so special to me,  
Cute as can be, baby of mine._

I turned to talk to Dimitri, but he was sound asleep, along with the triplets.

I smiled indulgently, brushing his hair out of his face. I shifted into a more comfortable position, careful not to wake Skye and Nika, and closed my eyes.

~VA~

Surprisingly, we'd all slept through the night, the triplets included. It was the most restful sleep I'd had in a while, and I was grateful for it.

Today was the memorial service for those who lost their lives when Galina and her army attacked. I dressed in a plain black dress that, while very form-fitting, wasn't tight. I wore the necklace that Dimitri had given me for Christmas, as well as my charm bracelet. I slipped my feet into plain black heels, then twisted my hair into a messy side bun.

We tucked the babies into their stroller and set out for the Academy's church. We were early, because Alberta had told us to be early. Lissa, Christian, Adrian, Viktoria, Eddie and Mia were there already, as well as a few other students and teachers. Everyone had solemn expressions on their faces.

Alberta walked up to us.

"They look cute," she said, referring to the babies. The girls were in little dresses, Annika in dark pink and Skylar in purple, and Aleks was dressed in corduroy pants and a little dressy sweater.

"I think so too," I replied, smiling indulgently at my children.

"How are your necks healing?" she asked.

"Mine's a little sore," Dimitri admitted. "But other than that, it's healing nicely."

"Yeah," I agreed. "Mine too."

"That's good," Alberta said. She sighed. "You two had better go sit down with the others. The memorial is starting soon."

Nodding, we made our way up to the front and sat down. I sat beside Lissa, handing Annika to her. She held her close to her chest, rubbing her back.

I held Aleks, while Dimitri held Skylar.

We watched as more and more people filed in, and then the memorial started.

About halfway through, Alberta said something . . . surprising, to say the least.

"I'd like it very much if Guardian Rose Hathaway came up and spoke," she said, her eyes meeting mine.

I internally groaned. She didn't say anything about a speech!

Guess I'd be winging this one.

I handed Aleks to Viktoria and strode up to the podium, clearing my throat.

I adjusted the microphone to accommodate my height, then began.

"First off, I'd like to take a moment to thank those who fought. Had you not, the outcome would have been much worse. And to the friends and families of those who lost their lives . . . I'd like to say that I'm so sorry for your loss. I lost someone in that battle too, though she was lucky enough to have been given another chance to live. I know that your loved ones didn't have that option.

"I think that we take the little everyday things for granted. For example, we always expect those we love to be there every day. We never take into account that one day, they won't be there anymore. And sometimes, we say things that we regret, but can't fix because the person is already gone. I guess what I'm trying to say is, always take the time to appreciate those around you, because they aren't always going to be there. Life is short; take chances. Don't waste time on stupid things. Spend every moment you can with those you love, and even after they're gone, look back on those times and remember how much you cherished that person. Fall in love. Do what you want to do in life. Live for those who can't. And most of all, never go to bed angry. Make amends. Thank you."

I went and sat back down. Viktoria handed Aleksandr back to me.

"That was beautiful, Roza," Dimitri whispered.

"Thanks. I came up with it on the spot," I replied just as quietly.

Dimitri shook his head in amusement. "You amaze me, Rose."

The memorial ended soon after my speech.

Afterward, we all hung out in mine and Dimitri's room.

Viktoria held Skylar, and she looked deep in thought. I knew that she was thinking about the fact that she could possibly get pregnant.

I just didn't know what to make of it. I mean, if she did get pregnant, I'd be happy for her and Adrian. But I know how much work it is, and I know how hard it is to be a teen mother. So of course I'd be relieved if she didn't get pregnant.

**~Three Weeks Later~**

**VPOV**

I bent over the toilet and threw up what was in my stomach. It wasn't much, because I hadn't eaten much in the past few days. I'd been too sick.

I'd taken a pregnancy test last night, and it had come back positive. I hadn't worked up the nerve to tell anyone, not even Adrian. I knew that I had to, though. Adrian needed to know.

I grabbed my phone and typed out a text to Rose. I needed her.

She called immediately.

"What's wrong, Tori?" she asked right away.

I took a deep breath. "I think you know, Rose."

The line was silent for a few seconds before Rose said, "Shit. Really?"

"Yeah, really. Ro, I'm terrified," I said, my voice trembling.

"Just breathe, Viktoria. Have you told anyone else?"

"No. You're the first person."

"Well, you need to tell your mother, and then we'll get a flight for you sorted out. It'll be okay, I promise."

"Okay. I'll call you back soon."

I hung up the phone and inhaled deeply, pulling myself up off the cold bathroom floor.

I slowly made my way downstairs to the living room, where Mama sat, knitting a sweater for Raisa.

She looked up and smiled when I walked in. "Hello, Vika," she said cheerfully, setting aside her knitting needles.

"Hi, Mama. Can I talk to you for a minute?"

She patted the space beside her on the couch, and I sat down stiffly. "Tell me what's wrong, Vika."

I opened my mouth to speak, but no words came out. I didn't know how to say it.

She sighed. "Viktoria, it's okay. I already know that you're pregnant. You aren't very discreet when you throw up in the mornings, you know."

My eyes widened. "And you're . . . okay with it?" I asked uncertainly.

She sighed again. "Well, there isn't much that I can do about it, is there? And who am I to judge, since I was your age when I got pregnant with Karolina?"

"I don't know. . . . But, Mama, I'm scared."

She smiled at me. "Honey, don't be. You and Adrian will be fine parents, I know it. You'll have what your sisters and I didn't have: A man who loves you and will take care of you and your child. You're better off than any of us, Vika. So don't be afraid," she said softly, squeezing my hand.

I leaned forward to hug her tightly, tears leaking from my eyes. "God, Mama, I love you," I whispered.

She rubbed my back. "I love you too, my little girl," she replied. She squeezed me tighter. "I don't want to let you go, but I know now that I have to."

"What are you saying?"

"I'm saying that it's okay for you to go live in America with Adrian," she said quietly.

More tears fell down my face. "Oh, Mama . . ."

"Shh . . ." she whispered, stroking my hair. "You'll be okay, Vika. I know you will."

**~One Day Later – At the Royal Court~**

Rose met me at the airport and drove me to Court. We didn't talk much, but the silence was nice.

When we arrived at Court, she dropped me off outside of Adrian's apartment.

"Good luck, Tori," she said quietly, smiling encouragingly.

"Thanks," I replied, closing the car door.

I walked up to the door, took a deep breath, and knocked.

"Coming," Adrian called from inside.

The door opened, and intense shock coursed through the bond. I had the disorienting moment of seeing myself through his eyes, and I fought to separate myself from him like Rose had taught me. It took effort, but I managed it.

"Viki?" he said, eyes wide.

"Hey, Adrian," I replied, smiling weakly.

He pulled me inside and sat me down on the couch. "What are you doing here? I thought you couldn't come until you graduated," he said, puzzled.

"Well, something came up." My eyes slid closed, and I sighed. "Remember what happened a few weeks ago?" I asked.

"Of course," he replied.

"Well . . ." My eyes snapped open, and I looked deeply into his emerald green ones. "I'm pregnant."

I fought hard to keep myself out of his head. The initial shock that he felt was overwhelming.

After a few moments, though, the shock faded, leaving something else: Warmth, joy, and pure happiness.

He crushed his lips to mine passionately, moulding them together. His hand found its way to my stomach, and I smiled against his lips.

"I love you so damn much, Viktoria," he breathed.

"I love you too, Adrian," I replied, giggling. I smiled mischievously. "You know, we have to go tell Dimitri now," I said nonchalantly.

Adrian paled considerably. "Shit. He's going to kill me, you know that, right?" he asked nervously.

"I won't let him," I replied with a wink. I stood, pulling him with me. "Come on, Adri. We might as well get it over with."

The whole walk to Rose and Dimitri's house, Adrian's thoughts were a jumbled mess.

I knocked on the door. Rose answered, smiling devilishly at us.

"Come to plan your funeral, Adrian?" she asked innocently.

Adrian gave her the finger. "Shut up, Rose. I'm freaking terrified right now."

She rolled her eyes. "Oh, come on," she said, pulling us in. "Dimitriiiii, look who's herrrrrreeee," she called.

We took our shoes off and followed her upstairs, where we found Dimitri holding Annika.

He looked startled to see me, so I knew that Rose hadn't said anything at all to him.

"Vika?" he questioned.

"Hey, Dimka," I said breezily. "Fancy meeting you here."

"What are you doing here?" he asked.

I shrugged. "I came to see Adrian about something important, and I thought I'd drop in," I replied, grinning.

He raised his eyebrow at us, eyeing us suspiciously. "Care to elaborate?"

I looked to Adrian, who had begun to sweat nervously. He nodded, and I turned my gaze back to Dimitri.

"Well, big brother, I'm pregnant," I announced cheerfully.

Dimitri's eyes looked like they would pop out of their sockets. His face went red, then a nasty shade of purple. He shook with uncontrolled rage.

"You," he growled, glaring at Adrian.

Adrian held up his hands in surrender. "Listen, D, it was a complete accident," he said slowly, backing up.

Dimitri handed Annika to Rose and began stalking toward Adrian.

"You got my baby sister pregnant," he snarled.

"Dude, I'm sorry. I didn't mean—"

Dimitri didn't give him time to say anything else before he hit Adrian with a well-aimed punch to the face.

Adrian staggered backwards, clutching his now-bleeding nose.

"DIMITRI!" I yelled, glaring at him before rushing over to Adrian. "Oh my God, Adrian. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Viktoria. I deserved it, really," he replied as he attempted to heal himself. He managed to stop the bleeding, but his nose was still broken.

I turned back to Dimitri, who was completely normal now.

"As long as you know that," he replied evenly, crossing his arms over his chest. He grinned. "Congratulations!"

My jaw dropped, and I was positively fuming. "Are you _serious_ right now?" I shrieked. "You just punched him for nothing!"

Dimitri shrugged. "He needed to know that he's an asshole for not being more careful. No one impregnates my little sister and gets away with it scot-free."

Huffing, I stalked off to the room that I stayed in whenever I stayed here and slammed the door behind me.

**RPOV**

I helped Adrian set the bone in his nose and called Lissa so that she could heal him.

"Okay, what happened?" she asked once she saw him.

"I punched him," Dimitri replied almost cheerfully.

Lissa's eyebrows shot up. "Might I ask _why_?"

"Because he got my sister pregnant."

"Wait, hold up. Viktoria's pregnant?"

We all nodded together. "She's here now," I said, grinning.

Lissa squealed. "Oh my God, this is so exciting!"

Adrian cleared his throat. "Liss, could you please just heal me already?" he asked impatiently.

Lissa rolled her eyes and laid her hand on his nose gently. Spirit flared up through the bond, and I basked in the joy of it.

"Thanks, Liss," Adrian said, rubbing his nose.

Dimitri walked over and extended his hand to him.

"We cool?" Dimitri asked.

"Yeah, we're cool," he replied.

"I _am_ happy for the two of you," he said seriously.

"Good to know."

Viktoria emerged soon after, and Lissa tackled her with a hug.

"We're pregnancy buddies!" she exclaimed happily.

"What now?" came a voice from the front door. Christian.

"I have a pregnancy buddy again!" Lissa squealed.

"Who?" Christian asked, walking up the stairs.

"Tori!"

Christian's eyes widened. "Really?"

Lissa nodded enthusiastically. "Isn't that great?"

"Of course," he replied, grinning.

Lissa gasped suddenly. "We need names!" she exclaimed.

"Liss, you can't even come up with names for your own babies," I pointed out.

"Well," she said, "we can do it all now!"

Chuckling, we all sat down on the couches.

"Well, I need two girl names," Lissa said, grinning.

Christian got that goofy grin on his face that he got whenever his twin daughters were mentioned.

"I need names in general," Viktoria said.

"I like Tristan!" Lissa exclaimed.

A smile crept its way onto Adrian's lips. "Tristan Ivashkov . . . it has a nice ring to it, don't you think?" he asked Viktoria.

She nodded. "I like it a lot."

"Liss, I really think that you should name the twins Melody and Harmony," I suggested.

Lissa gasped, her eyes sparkling. "I think I'm in love," she whispered, laying her hand over her increasingly round belly.

"Me too," Christian agreed, laying his hand over hers. "Melody Rose and Harmony Rhea Dragomir-Ozera."

Lissa clapped. "They're perfect!" she exclaimed, kissing Christian softly.

"We still need a girl name if it's a girl," Adrian said.

"What about . . . Meaghan?" Dimitri suggested.

Viktoria squealed. "Dimka, you're a genius!"

"I do like Meaghan," Adrian commented.

"Then everyone's all set!" Lissa said happily. "Now, I want a peanut butter, frosted flakes and cheese sandwich!"

Christian shivered. "God, Liss, that's just gross."

She shook her head, grinning. "It's _grrrrrrreat_!"

**_There we are, end of chapter 38 :) favourite parts? Anyone?_**

**_Please review, guys. I really wanna get to at least 700 before the ending of the story..._**

**_Until next time!_**

**_~Sar_**


	43. Chapter 44

_**A/N: I officially adore you guys! 695! I think my new goal is gonna have to be 725-750 :P You guys are seriously amazing :D**_

_**So, second to last chapter...I may shed a tear :') I can't believe it. I'm in shock about it :P I hope you all love this chapter, because it was so fun to write :D**_

_**Enjoy, guys!**_

_**~I Heart Herondale Boys~**_

_***EDIT* I'm sorry, I confused some people XD I think I confused myself, but I wrote the chapter in the middle of the night...for clarification, there is no Melody and Harmony because one of them turned out to be a boy...I thought it would be kinda funny :P I hope this cleared everything up :)**_

**CHAPTER **Thirty-Nine

**~The Next Year~**

"Liss, I can't do this," I said, panicking.

Her nimble hands continued to quickly fasten the pearl buttons, completely ignoring my panic-mode.

"Rose, you can. It's just your nerves," she replied calmly, buttoning the last few buttons and smoothing the skirt of my dress. "You're going to be fine. Just take a deep breath and think of Dimitri waiting for you."

I inhaled deeply, exhaling through my mouth. I repeated the exercise until I felt myself calming down. I would do this for Dimitri.

"Momma," came a sweet, high-pitched voice. It belonged to Annika. "Is you gonna fix my hair now?"

"Honey, can you ask Auntie Viktoria? Mommy's busy."

"Okay," she said, waddling off to find Viktoria. "Come on, sissy. Auntie can do your hair too!" she exclaimed, taking hold of Skylar's hand. Skylar nodded and walked along with her. Aleksandr was with the boys, because he'd claimed that he wanted to be with his daddy.

"Sit down so I can do your hair," Lissa said softly. I acquiesced, feeling slightly numb.

I never thought that I'd get such bad jitters. I mean, I'd been waiting so long for this day, the day that I'd finally marry Dimitri and become Rose Hathaway-Belikova. I couldn't understand why I was so freaked out!

Lissa styled my hair with a feather-light touch. She pinned up the top half, bumping it, and curled the bottom half, careful not to burn me. She fastened little jewels into my hair, sprayed in some glitter, then held it in place with loads of hair spray.

Earlier, she'd painted my nails a light purple to match the purple in the wedding. The colors were lavender and mint green; the bridesmaids' dresses were lavender, while the groomsmen had mint green ties.

She moved on to my makeup. It was nothing special; she wanted my natural beauty to show, as she put it.

When she finished, she smiled. "God, Rose, you look gorgeous," she gushed. "You have to look at yourself!" she exclaimed, fastening my veil into my hair.

Taking a deep breath, I stood and turned towards the full-sized mirror.

My breath whooshed out of me at the sight of myself. Lissa was right; I _did_ look gorgeous. My dress was beautiful white lace, with a black sash. It was strapless, with a sweetheart neckline, and the skirt of the dress flowed down my body like a waterfall. It had a long-ish train, and it suited my body perfectly. My hair was curled to perfection, and it cascaded down my back. The light caught the glitter in it, making it sparkle. My long veil went down my back, and when the time came, it would cover my face. My makeup was very light, just some white eye shadow and some black eyeliner on the top and bottom lids. Clear gloss covered my lips, making them shine.

"Wow, Liss . . . thank you. You did an amazing job," I said quietly, turning to hug her tightly.

"You're welcome, Rose. It's your day; you deserve to look absolutely gorgeous." She sat down in the seat I'd been occupying moments before and began straightening her hair. Once she'd finished that, she applied some makeup, and then slipped her dress on.

Her dress—as well as Viktoria's and Mia's—was a lavender, satin, spaghetti strap dress that fell to just above the knee. There was a black sash around the waist, and they'd all be wearing black heels.

We went over to grab Julian and Nicole so that we could dress them in their little clothes.

Funny story about Lissa's twins: Turns out that one of them was a boy. So she and Christian scrambled to come up with new names, and what they decided on was Julian Lucas Dragomir-Ozera and Nicole Moira Dragomir-Ozera.

"You excited to be a flower girl, Nicki?" I cooed to Nicole, tickling her belly. She giggled at me and grinned.

"Yeah," she replied, giggling again. "I has a pretty dress!"

Julian and Nicole were almost thirteen months old now, and they were adorable. Julian had midnight black hair and jade green eyes, while Nicole had platinum blonde hair and crystal blue eyes. They were both a perfect balance of both Lissa and Christian.

Once they were dressed, we crossed into the adjoining room, where Viktoria and Mia were finishing their makeup. Skylar's and Annika's hair was done, half up like mine. Their hair was already curly, and very long. Even though they were only eighteen months old, it already went halfway down their backs. They wore their dresses that were smaller versions of the bridesmaids dresses, and they were absolutely adorable. Little Meaghan and Mason laid, asleep, in the crib, dressed in a purple dress and tiny tuxedo. Mason was Mia's and Eddie's surprise baby. He had Mia's golden hair, but Eddie's hazel eyes.

My girls gasped in unison. "Momma, you look _bootiful_!" they chimed, drawing out the word beautiful. It was weird when they said things together, since they were completely identical. It was kinda funny, though.

"So do the two of you," I replied, smiling indulgently at them. They giggled and started a conversation with each other, gesturing to their dresses.

"They're right though, Rose," Mia said with a grin.

"Thanks," I breathed, chuckling nervously. I felt like I was going to puke from the nerves. "Tori, what are the guys doing?" I asked.

Her eyes went blank, and I knew that she'd just gone into Adrian's head.

She blinked moments later, coming back to herself. "They just left their room," she replied.

I nodded, closing my eyes. _No panicking,_ I told myself firmly.

**DPOV**

"I'm so ready for this," I told Christian as he tied my tie for me. I couldn't do it if my life depended on it.

He laughed. "I'll bet you are. It's been two years since you proposed, so it's about time."

"Hey, it's been a year and a half since you proposed to Lissa and you're still not married," I pointed out, smirking.

"Good point," he grumbled.

"Who wants a shot?" Adrian asked, grinning.

Eddie and Christian immediately said they did, but I hesitated.

"Dude, come on. It's your wedding day; you need to take a celebratory shot," Adrian said.

I sighed. "Fine."

"Daddy, what's a shot?" Aleksandr asked. "Can I has one?"

We all cracked up laughing. "No, Aleks, you can't have one. You're too young for liquor." Seeing his face fall, I knelt down to his level. "But you can have a shot of apple juice."

His face lit up. "Yay! I gonna has a shot of apple juice!" he cheered.

Adrian poured the shots, including Aleksandr's shot of apple juice.

We all clinked our shot glasses together.

"To Rose and Dimitri," Eddie said, grinning.

"To Rose and Dimitri," Christian and Adrian echoed, and then the five of us downed our shots.

Tristan wailed from his crib, and Adrian went over to scoop him up.

"Sorry buddy, but you're _definitely_ too young for a shot," he told his son, chuckling.

I sat down and pulled Aleks onto my knee.

"Are you excited to marry Mommy, Daddy?" he asked.

"I am," I replied. "I've waited a very long time."

"Am I gonna get a baby brother soon?"

I burst out laughing, unable to help myself. He was so serious, and it was impossible not to laugh. "Not yet, buddy. Maybe someday."

"But I want one now."

I chuckled. "Be patient, Aleksandr."

"Dudes, we gotta go. It's almost showtime," Christian pointed out, checking the time on his phone.

I set Aleksandr down and straightened his tie, then helped him get his shoes on. Adrian put Tristan in his crib, and then we filed into the van and left.

**RPOV**

We sat and waited until my parents came knocking on the door, telling us that it was time to go.

My anxiety spiked, and I kept a firm grip on Lissa's hand. Skylar held my other hand, and Annika held hers.

We all piled into the vans. Skylar announced that she wanted to ride with Auntie Viktoria and Auntie Mia, and we let her. I rode with Dad, Lissa, Annika, Nicole and Julian. Mom, Viktoria, Mia, Skylar and Meaghan rode behind us in the second van.

The closer we got, the more I freaked out. I was almost hyperventilating by the time we reached the familiar church at St. Vladimir's.

When we got inside the church lobby, Olena, Karolina, Sonya and Yeva met us.

"You look beautiful, honey," Olena whispered, hugging me tightly. "Why are you shaking?"

"Nerves," I replied, chuckling nervously.

"Don't be nervous, Roza. You've been waiting a long time for this."

"I know. I'll get over it."

I hope.

"We just wanted to come and see you before the ceremony," Karolina said, smiling. She extended her arms for a hug, which I gladly gave her.

"Good luck," she said sweetly before turning and walking. Olena and Sonya followed, but Yeva hung back.

"I'm happy for you, Granddaughter," she told me, tapping my cheek lightly before turning to follow them.

Mom handed me my beautiful bouquet of lavender roses, white lilies, green orchids and white irises and gave me a quick hug.

"I love you, Rosie," she murmured.

"I love you too, Mom," I whispered. She made her way inside to go sit with Dimitri's family.

Dad pulled my veil over my face and smiled at me.

"You're going to do great, Rose," he said. "Knock 'em dead."

Despite my nerves, I cracked a smile. "Thanks, Dad."

The soft piano music of "Pachelbel's Canon" floated out to us.

"That's our cue," Mia murmured.

Skylar and Annika went first with their baskets of petals, scattering them all over the place. Mia followed, pulling a wagon with Nicole and Meaghan. Viktoria soon followed, and Lissa turned to me.

"Count to ten then follow me," she whispered before beginning her walk.

The music morphed to the traditional wedding march, and I focused on slowing my breathing.

After ten seconds, I linked arms with my father, and we began our walk. He gave my arm a gentle squeeze as we walked through the doors.

The pews were decorated with ribbons and flowers that were mint green and lavender, and the whole church smelled wonderful. The almost-soapy smell of orchids hit me the most, and it smelled amazing.

My gaze drifted up to the altar and found Dimitri's. He looked amazing in his tuxedo, and I had to stop myself from drooling. His chocolate brown eyes sparkled as he watched me walk down the aisle.

It seemed like I'd walked forever before I finally reached the altar and my hand found Dimitri's. My nerves had completely dissolved as soon as my skin touched his.

"You look absolutely beautiful," he whispered.

"Thank you," I whispered back.

Father Andrew began the ceremony, reading all of the mundane wedding stuff.

When it the time came for the vows, Dimitri went first. We'd written our own vows, wanting it to be special.

He cleared his throat and looked deeply into my eyes.

"Rose, I just want to say that you look absolutely stunning," he began, and I blushed. "You always look stunning to me, though. No matter what you wear, you're always the most beautiful woman in the world in my eyes.

"When I met you, I instantly fell in love. You were so fierce and beautiful that night, and I saw everything I could've ever wanted in a woman. You added a splash of color to my dull life. You were like a fire that burned away the bad things in my life. You taught me to have fun in life.

"When we started our relationship, I'd accepted the fact that I'd never have children. But that was okay, because I'd rather have you. You were all that mattered. But, somehow, you gave me three beautiful children, and I feel complete.

"Roza, you're the best thing that could have ever happened to me. Let's spend the rest of our lives together," he finished, eyes shining.

Aleksandr came up with the rings, and Dimitri picked up mine.

"Repeat after me," Father Andrew said. Dimitri nodded. "With this ring, I thee wed."

"With this ring, I thee wed," he repeated clearly, slipping the ring on my third finger of my left hand.

I took a deep breath before starting.

"Dimitri, when I met you three years ago, I can honestly say that I wanted nothing to do with you," I admitted, earning a few chuckles. "But then, we started training, and I realized that I wanted to get to know you, to learn everything I could about you. I wanted to be there for you if you needed me, and I wanted you to confide in me. At the time, we thought we'd never be able to be together. But we made it through, and so much good has come from it.

"You had faith in me when no one else had. I remember when Lissa and I came back to the school, you stuck up for us, because you knew what would happen to me if you didn't. I'll always be grateful to you for that. You tolerated me when no one else could. You were there for me when I needed someone to talk to. And you'd always listen and offer advice, even if it was usually a bunch of zen crap." Everyone laughed, and I continued. "But I loved that zen crap. It actually was useful.

"You keep me grounded, Dimitri. You keep me thinking realistically, and you keep me safe. You take the time to think things through, unlike me. And that has kept me alive many times.

"I guess that what I'm trying to say is thank you for always being there for and taking care of me. Thank you for our children. Thank you for walking into my life and becoming my knight in shining armor, minus the armor. I love you, Comrade." Embarrassingly, a few tears trickled down my face, and I hastily wiped them away.

"Repeat after me: With this ring, I thee wed."

"With this ring, I thee wed," I repeated, taking the ring and slipping it on his finger.

"With the power invested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss the bride," Father Andrew announced, smiling warmly.

Dimitri took the veil between his fingers and pulled it off my face, tucking it back. He gently cupped my face in his hands and kissed me tenderly. I rested my hands on his chest, leaning into him.

Everyone burst into applause, and we broke apart, turning to face everyone.

I slipped my fingers through his, and we walked down the aisle together.

A horse drawn carriage awaited us outside the church. Hitched to the carriage were Shadow and Callie, looking adorable. Someone had put a top hat on Shadow's head and a veil in Callie's mane.

Dimitri helped me up then sat beside me, wrapping his arms around me.

"Thank you for marrying me, Roza. You've made me the happiest man alive," he whispered.

I grinned. "No problem."

He chuckled and kissed my temple, and the carriage started moving toward the ballroom, where the reception was. People were quickly making their way there, their cars moving faster than our carriage.

"I love you, Mrs. Hathaway-Belikova," he said clearly.

"I love you too, goof," I replied, leaning in and kissing him deeply.

**_Aww, did you guys like it? I thought that the whole chapter was just a big ball of cute :D_**

**_Next up: Reception and honeymoon!_**

**_Please review, guys! You've all been so awesome, so continue to show me how awesome you are! Like I said, my new goal is 725-750 :)_**

**_Until next time...the last time for this story._**

**_~Sar_**


	44. Chapter 45

_**A/N: Hey everyone! Wow, last chapter...I can't believe it! You guys have all been so awesome over the past nine months, and I just want to thank you all :)**_

_**This chapter is dedicated to Nicia, TeamVampireAcademy15, Ellixie, NightWriter511, SassYNoles, Milady D' Hiver, TVD-VA-HH-lover723, Halloween265, unique rose, chris1204e, PrincessRedfern, LovinTheSun1996, anonymus reviewer Sandra Villa, olivia williams, talkygirl, Rosmarie Hathaway, and many more!**_

_**~ I Heart Herondale Boys ~**_

**CHAPTER **Forty

When we arrived, Dimitri lifted me out of the carriage. I walked up and gave the horses a quick pet before hooking my arm through Dimitri's and walking inside.

We waited in the outer part to be announced so that we could walk in.

"Everyone, give a big, warm welcome to Mr. and Mrs. Dimitri Belikov!" Adrian shouted into a mike. The doors in front of us opened, and we strode in, grinning.

"Mommy! Daddy!" the triplets yelled, running toward us. Annika tripped on her dress and fell, but she quickly pulled herself back up and ran to us.

Dimitri and I knelt down so that our children could hug us. They gave us each sloppy kisses on the cheek before turning and running back to where Lissa stood.

"Now, it's time for the customary first dance as husband and wife," Adrian announced, grinning at us.

Dimitri and I stood, and he extended his hand for me to take. I placed mine in his, and we made our way to the dancefloor. The fog machines turned on, and then the music started.

The song was "Marry Song" by Band of Horses.

Dimitri's hand rested on my hip, the other held tightly in mine. My other hand was on his shoulder, and we began our slow dance.

"You know," he said quietly, grinning, "Aleks asked me today if he was going to get a baby brother soon."

I chuckled softly. "Did he really?" I asked. Dimitri nodded. "What did you tell him?"

"I told him maybe someday," he replied.

I nodded. "I can deal with that." I grinned and rested my head on his shoulder. "Do you want more kids?"

I felt him shrug. "Like I told Aleksandr, maybe someday. Do you?"

I hesitated, trying to think of something to say that wouldn't give anything away. "Sure, even though our hands are full enough with the three we have now."

His chest rumbled with quiet laughter. "Agreed."

We danced through the rest of the song in silence, enjoying the company of each other.

When the next song came on, Dad tapped on Dimitri's shoulder.

"Can I steal my daughter away?" he asked, grinning.

"Of course," Dimitri replied, smiling. "I'll go find Mama." He walked away, and Dad took my hand. We began rocking slowly to "The Only Exception" by Paramore.

"How does it feel to be married?" he asked.

"Absolutely wonderful, Dad." I grinned mischievously. "When are you going to ask Mom to marry you?"

He chuckled. "There isn't much that you don't pick up on, is there?"

"Nope."

He chuckled again, then sighed. "I want to soon, but you know your mother. She's not really the marrying type."

"She loves you, Dad. I know that she _will_ want to marry you. And hey, think of it like this: It's not too late to give me a baby sister," I joked.

Dad rolled his eyes. "Yeah. Right."

"What? I wasn't kidding. I don't wanna be an only child anymore."

He ignored me. "So . . . you _do_ think she'll marry me?"

I nodded. "Just ask her already. Take her out back to the gazebo or something, and make it special. But no nonsense, you know how she is."

He waited until the song ended, kissed me on the forehead, and left in search of my mother.

I danced with Christian, Adrian and Eddie before it was time to eat.

The wedding party sat at the head table, and we waited for our food.

Christian got up, grabbed a glass of champagne and a mike, and clanged his knife against the glass to get everyone's attention.

He cleared his throat. "So, as Dimitri's best man, I have to give a speech. I don't have anything prepared, because I suck at remembering speeches. So I'm just going to say whatever comes to mind.

"I met Rose and Dimitri almost three years ago right here at St. Vladimir's. It wasn't until they actually started dating that I got to know Dimitri. Then he became my guardian, and also my best friend. He's my right-hand man, and we've done some pretty stupid shit together. For example, on one of the nights when I actually got him to drink with me, we drank a little too much, which resulted in streaking naked through Court."

Dimitri looked absolutely mortified that Christian was telling the story, but everyone else (including me) was laughing their heads off.

"Needless to say, everyone got a nice view of Dimitri that night. Anyways, I can honestly call him my brother. And Rose is my sister. She and I tease each other to no ends, but we both know that when it really comes down to it, we'd do anything for each other, like siblings do." A mischievous gleam was in his eyes now, and I was instantly worried.

"Now, an embarrassing story of Rose's . . ." he said, smirking. "Well, there was the time about a year ago, when Annika, Skylar and Aleksandr were just little babies, that she really made an ass of herself. It was the night of her nineteenth birthday, and she was wasted. Dimitri wasn't there at that point, because he was working late around Court. So, anyways, she was up dancing on the tables, drunk out of her mind, when she tumbled off and smacked her head. I had to put her over my shoulder and carry her to the clinic to get stitches because she split her forehead open. After that, she insisted on going back to drink _more._ I wouldn't let her, because she was the most drunk I'd ever seen her. She continued on to scream and shout at me until Dimitri came and got her and carried her home, kicking and screaming. The next morning, she had a huge hangover and her head hurt where she'd gotten her stitches. I think she learned her lesson after that.

"Anyways, I'm really happy for the two of you, and I wish you both a happy life together." He raised his glass. "To Dimitri and Rose!" he cheered, and everyone else repeated him and raised their glasses.

It was Lissa's turn to say her speech, so she stood and took the mike from Christian.

"I've known Rose since I was five years old and in kindergarten. We immediately became best friends, and she's been there for me through everything. She's risked her life for me countless times, and I couldn't have asked for a better friend.

"When I had the twins, Rose held my hand and told me that everything would be over soon, that the pain would end. She kept me calm and talked me through it, and I honestly don't think I could've done it without her.

"When I was fourteen and I lost my family, I didn't think that anything would ever be okay ever again. But Rose got me through that rough patch in my life. She was someone to talk to, a shoulder to cry on, and she became my sister, the only family I really had at that point. She sacrificed so much for me, and I'll never be able to thank her enough.

"I met Dimitri two years ago when he found us and brought us back to the Academy. To be honest, I was kind of scared of him at first. But Rose seemed completely comfortable with him, so I gradually become comfortable with him too.

"I didn't even know that Rose and Dimitri had feelings for each other until after the attack on the Academy. The way he looked once he woke up and found out that Rose was in a coma . . . he looked dead. There was no light in his eyes, and that's when I realized that their bond was deeper than that of student and teacher. It was a bond of love. And in that instant, I knew that nothing would keep them apart, not even the law.

"I want to congratulate the two of you for making it this far. I love the both of you dearly, and you are my family. I know that the two of you will be together forever."

I got up and hugged her tightly, tears leaking from my eyes. "Thank you," I whispered.

"No problem, sis," she replied. Everyone began to clap, and then we sat back down and the food was served.

~VA~

"Call me if anything happens. I don't care how small it is, call me anyway. Even if one of them bump their heads. Hell, even if one of them gets a papercut. Okay?" I asked Lissa, fiddling with the hem of my cardigan. I'd changed into a light purple summerdress after the reception because I couldn't really wear my wedding dress on the plane.

"Rose, I get it! Just go and enjoy yourself, the kids will be fine with me," she said, shoving me out the door.

"I need to give them one more hug and kiss," I mumbled.

She sighed and let me back in.

I ran to my babies and hugged them all tightly, kissing them all over their faces.

"I'll call you guys every night, okay?"

"Okay," they replied in unison.

"Mommy and Daddy will see you three in a week," I whispered, letting go of them. They nodded.

"Bye Momma," they chimed as I walked out the door.

"Bye, peanuts," I replied before taking Dimitri's hand and getting in the car.

A few tears fell down my face, and Dimitri gave my hand a gentle squeeze. "Roza, they're going to be fine. Don't worry about them."

I sniffled. "I know they'll be fine, but it's so hard to be away from them," I replied, wiping at my eyes.

"I know, love. But they're meeting us in Oahu in a week, so we'll see them soon."

I let that reassure me, and I curled into Dimitri's side. Mom and Dad were in the front seat, and they were driving us to the airport.

Mom was positively glowing with happiness, her hand never leaving Dad's. He'd proposed earlier in the night, and, like I'd said she would, she said yes.

"Mommy, I want a baby sister!" I said in my most childish voice.

She turned back to face me, smirking. "Well, tell your father to get on it."

I squealed in disgust. That was so wrong in so many ways. "God, Mom, that's nasty. I _so_ didn't need the mental picture. I think I'm scarred for life," I groaned.

She laughed. "Well, how else do you think babies are made?" she asked.

I covered my ears with my hands and hummed to block out her voice. I felt Dimitri chuckle.

We kept the conversation light the rest of the drive, with no more talk of babies or how they were made.

When the time came to part ways at the airport, I hugged my parents tightly.

"I'll see the two of you in a week," I murmured.

"See you then, Rosie," Mom said, smiling.

We turned and went through the security check, then sat down on the uncomfortable chairs as we waited to board the plane.

"Are you happy, Roza?" Dimitri asked suddenly.

Puzzled, I turned to look at his face. It was unreadable.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, are you happy with your life? With . . . me?" I opened my mouth to say something, but he hushed me. "Let me elaborate. Roza, I completely changed your life. Made you a teen mother of three. Do you . . . do you regret anything?"

I shook my head vigorously. "Of course not! Why would I?"

He shrugged. "I just . . . I don't know, I feel guilty sometimes."

I smacked him upside the head. "That's ridiculous, Dimitri. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't know what it was life to love. I wouldn't have the three most beautiful children on the planet. I wouldn't have _you._"

My words seemed to reassure him, and he breathed a sigh of relief. "Okay. Thank you, Roza."

"There's nothing to thank me for, Dimitri. I love you, plain and simple. I can't imagine life without you."

He kissed me softly, and I sighed happily.

"Flight 2027 to Oahu, Hawaii is now boarding," said a voice over the intercom.

We stood, and I straightened my dress.

"That's our cue," Dimitri murmured, taking my hand in his. We grabbed our carry-ons and made our way over to the lady who was taking our tickets, and then we boarded the plane and headed to our seats in first-class.

The seats were wide and luxurious, and Dimitri pulled up the armrest between us so that I could lean on him.

The seatbelt light flashed on, and the stewardess' voice came on the intercom. She explained emergency procedures and airplane safety, and before we knew it, the plane was taking off.

The seatbelt sign turned off, and I unbuckled my seatbelt.

"I'll be right back. I have to pee," I said with a grin. He nodded, and I leaned down to peck him on the lips before making my way to the small airplane bathroom.

I made it there just in time to throw up.

No one knew yet that I was pregnant again, not Dimitri, not Lissa, not even my parents. I'd been keeping it under wraps for the past three days, waiting for the perfect moment. I'd gone alone to Dr. Lewis to confirm that I really was pregnant, and I'd had my first ultrasound. I was four weeks pregnant . . . with twins.

I had no idea why I kept having multiples, but I was overjoyed.

My morning sickness was weird, because it was more like night sickness. But since my night was technically human morning, it sort of made since. But thinking about it too much gave me a headache, so I just sat there for a moment to calm my stomach.

I rinsed out my mouth and then pulled a pack of gum from my bra, taking a piece to get rid of the nasty taste in my mouth.

I re-emerged, looking like nothing had happened at all.

I smiled at Dimitri and sat back down, curling up beside him.

I yawned. "I'm so tired," I said, sighing.

"Then sleep," Dimitri replied, stroking my hair.

I yawned again. "Sleeping sounds like a good idea." I closed my eyes, and his arm went around me. "Night, Comrade."

"Goodnight, Roza."

~VA~

I slept until we landed in beautiful Oahu. It was mid-afternoon there, and it was absolutely gorgeous.

We checked into the Hilton, changed into swimsuits, and practically ran to the beach.

We ran into the crystal blue water, and I was delighted to find that it was warm.

We swam out to a deserted part of the beach, splashing each other the whole time.

I giggled as Dimitri pushed me against a giant rock. My legs wrapped around his waist as he fiercely pressed his lips to mine. He bit my bottom lip and I moaned, grinding my hips against his. He made a sound low in his throat, a growl of sorts.

"God, that bikini is so sexy on you, Roza," he growled, his desire thickening his accent. "I'm having a hard time not ripping it off of you."

I'd chosen a bright red strapless bikini for the day because I knew that it looked good on me. And I knew the effect it would have on Dimitri.

"What's stopping you?" I asked innocently, batting my eyelashes at him.

He groaned and held me tighter to his body. "You torture me," he mumbled.

I leaned forward and slowly, tantalizingly kissed my way up his neck and jaw until I reached his lips, kissing him deeply. I explored his mouth with my tongue and he moaned.

He reached behind me and untied my bikini top, throwing it on a nearby rock.

He ran his tongue over my neck, and I shivered, threading my fingers in his hair and holding him closer.

He sucked on my pulse point, and I writhed under his expert tongue. Shockwaves rolled down my spine nonstop, and I found myself gasping for breath.

"Dimitri, now," I breathed.

Needing no further encouragement, he shed his board shorts and pulled off my bikini bottom, flinging them both on the rock that my bikini top already laid on.

I stared into his lust-filled eyes and watched as they traveled down my body and back up to my lips. He leaned in and kissed me desperately, passionately, deeply, and heat and electricity blossomed between us.

That day, we had sex on a beach for the first time ever, and was it ever amazing! The water rolled against us and added a new taste to our skin. Dimitri was an amazing lover, as always. He knew exactly what to do, what to say, to send me over the edge. Every time with him felt like the first time all over again.

When we finished, we sank deeper into the water so that only our heads showed, and he kissed me softly.

"I've always wanted to do that," he murmured, nuzzling my nose with his own.

"What? Have sex on a beach?"

His lips twitched, and he smiled. "You're so crude," he said affectionately. "I meant _make love_ to _you_ on a beach."

"Well, it was pretty damn phenomenal," I conceded, grinning. "We'd better get dressed before someone sees us."

"I hate to cover up that beautiful body of yours, but I think you're right," he replied, retrieving our swimsuits from the rock. He tied my bikini top for me, and we began our swim back to the main part of the beach. It was almost twilight, and we wanted to go back to our room and order room service.

I threw myself on the comfortable bed and sighed happily. It was a water bed, and it was so damn comfortable that I never wanted to get up.

Dimitri called and ordered our food, and it arrived moments later. He'd gotten steak and veggies, and I'd gotten a grilled chicken caesar salad and some mozza sticks. It was absolutely delicious, and I found myself wanting more once I'd finished.

After we'd eaten, Dimitri and I took a shower together before curling up in bed. The waves from the beach below could be heard, and it was so calming that I almost fell asleep. But then I remembered that I had to call Lissa to check on my peanuts.

I grabbed my cell phone and dialled her number, putting it on speakerphone.

She answered after three rings sounding cheerful.

"Hey, Rose. What's up?" she asked.

"Not much. Dimitri and I just ate the most amazing room service ever, and now we're cuddling and listening to the waves," I replied.

"Aww, cute. How's Oahu?"

"Absolutely beautiful. You guys are going to love it here when you come down next week."

"I can't wait!" she exclaimed. "Do you want to talk to the kids?"

"Yeah, put them on."

I heard Lissa telling them that it was Mommy and she wanted to talk to them.

"Momma!" came the voices of my children. I nearly wept at the sound of their voices; I missed them terribly.

"Hi, peanuts. Say hi to Daddy," I said, smiling.

"Hi Daddy!" they said in unison.

He chuckled. "Hi, peanuts."

"Are you three being good for Auntie Lissa?" I asked.

There was a chorus of "Mmm-hmm" and then Aleksandr saying, "She took us for ice cream! She the bestest auntie ever!"

The other two voiced their agreement, and I chuckled.

"Is you having fun, Momma?" Skylar asked.

"I am, sweetie. But I bet I'll be having more fun when you, your sister and your brother get here next week."

She giggled. "We is gonna fly on a biiiiiiig airplane!" she cheered.

"To Hawaii!" Annika chimed in. Then, she asked, "Daddy, where's Hawaii?"

"Hawaii is far away from Pennsylvania and Montana, Nika," he replied. "It takes a long time to get here."

"Ohhhh," she said like she understood exactly where Hawaii was.

"Momma, Daddy, Auntie Lissy said we gonna go to play with the horsies, so we gotta go," Aleksandr told me.

"Okay, peanuts. We love you, and we'll call you tomorrow," Dimitri replied.

"Love you!" they said in unison.

"Love you too," I replied before hanging up the phone, smiling.

"They sound like they're having fun," Dimitri commented, hugging my body close to his.

"Yeah, they do. I just can't wait to see them next Saturday."

"Me either, Roza. Me either."

I began tracing shapes on his chest, and he sighed.

"Dimitri, you know how, when we had our first dance, you told me that Aleksandr asked if he was getting a baby brother soon?" I asked, looking him straight in the eye.

His eyebrows furrowed, and he looked puzzled. "Yes . . . why?"

I grinned. "Because he just might be getting a little brother very soon."

"What do you mean?"

I took his hand and laid it over my flat stomach. "I'm pregnant, Dimitri."

To say he was shocked would be an understatement. But his eyes lit up, and a goofy grin appeared on his lips.

"You're pregnant?" he asked dreamily.

I nodded. I stood up and rummaged through my carry-on bag for the ultrasound photo. When I found it, I handed it to him.

"I went to see Dr. Lewis the other day . . . I'm four weeks pregnant."

I let him discover on his own that I was having twins by looking at the photo.

He pulled me down on top of him and placed a soft, lingering kiss on my lips. "Twins," he breathed, his eyes sliding closed. When they opened again, they were filled with happy tears. "I love you so much, Rose. For the third time, you've made me happier than I ever imagined someone could be. Thank you," he whispered.

"My pleasure," I replied with a grin. "Literally."

And so we celebrated that night in the best way we knew how, all night long.

**~One Week Later – The Arrival Day of the Others~**

Everyone would be arriving here at the hotel in a few moments, and I was so, so happy. I'd missed everyone so much in the past week, though it had been nice to have time alone with Dimitri. We'd never really had time for just the two of us before.

I pulled my short-shorts on over my zebra stripe bikini bottoms, along with a long, sleeveless cardigan so that my back wasn't as exposed. I never wore much more than this since it was always so hot out. Dimitri only ever wore a pair of shorts, which always left his beautiful chest uncovered for me to drool over.

I saw him come up behind me in the mirror. He wrapped his arms around my waist, leaving his hands on my belly. His lips were on my neck, and I sighed happily, leaning back into him.

I turned so that I was facing him and rested my hands on his chest. I smiled mischievously. "Behave, Mr. Belikov. The others will be here any minute."

He pouted adorably, and I laughed. I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled his face down to mine for a quick kiss before giving him a playful shove.

"That's all you get for now," I said playfully.

He crossed his arms over his chest and shook his head. "Tease," he muttered.

I giggled. "You know it."

Just then, someone started pounding on our bedroom door. There were chants of "Mommy!" and "Daddy!" from the other side, and Lissa's voice saying, "Let us in!"

I ran to the door and threw it open, revealing my friends and family.

"Skye! Anni! Alek!" I exclaimed happily. They ran forward and jumped, all three, into my arms. I held them tight and spun them around, their giggles of joy comforting. I began to cry, dammit. I'd missed my babies so much in the past week, and it was a relief to hold them again.

Dimitri wrapped his arms around the four of us and gave each of the kids a kiss.

"We missed you, peanuts," he said, his voice thick with emotion.

"We missed you too!" Aleksandr exclaimed.

"I missed Mommy and Daddy more," Skylar claimed.

"_No, I_ missed Mommy and Daddy more!" Annika argued, huffing.

We set them down on the floor as Skylar and Annika bickered about who missed us more. Aleksandr hung on to me for dear life.

"Momma, I don't like it when they fight," he told me, burying his face in my chest.

I stroked his hair soothingly. "It's alright, Alek." I cleared my throat, and the girls stopped. "Girls, you're making your brother sad by fighting. I want you two to hug and kiss and agree that you both missed us the same," I said in my no-nonsense mom tone.

They sighed. "Sorry, sissy," they said together and hugged, giving each other a big kiss.

"Auntie Wosie! Auntie Wosie!" came the voices of Julian and Nicole. They waddled in and I put Aleksandr down so that I could scoop them up.

"Uncle Mitri!" they said as they saw him.

"Hi, little ones," he replied, stroking their soft hair.

I set them back down, and they wrapped their arms around my legs.

"Well, where's my 'I missed you' kiss?" Christian asked jokingly.

"Kiss my ass, Chris," I replied, shoving him playfully.

"Turn around," he shot back, laughing.

"Momma!" Aleksandr said sharply. "You said a bad word!"

"Sorry, Alley Cat. Mommy didn't mean to," I told him.

He nodded. "Don't say it again or I put you on the naughty chair."

"Roger that."

"Well, I see you're all ready for the beach," Lissa joked, gesturing to my attire.

"It's too hot here to wear anything more," I replied, grinning. "And, hey. If you've got it, flaunt it."

She rolled her eyes. "Well, we just wanted to drop off your children before we went to our own rooms. We'll go get our bathing suits on and then we'll be right back."

"Gotcha."

"Rose, Dimitri, can you two watch Tristan and Meaghan while we go get changed?" Viktoria asked.

"Of course," Dimitri replied, taking the hands of his niece and nephew.

Everyone split off to get changed, and we lifted Tristan and Meaghan onto the bed.

"Hi, babies," I cooed.

Meaghan reached for me, and I picked her up. Dimitri went to help Annika, Aleksandr and Skylar get changed into their bathing suits, so I entertained the children.

Of course, Meaghan and Tristan weren't identical twins, since one was a boy and the other was a girl. Meaghan looked exactly like her father, with those emerald green Ivashkov eyes and his sable brown hair, while Tristan had the chocolaty Belikov eyes and Viktoria's brown hair. But Tristan had Adrian's nose and mouth, while Meaghan had Viktoria's facial shape, lips, eyebrows and nose.

"Did you two miss your aunt Rose?" I crooned, tickling their bellies. They giggled and starting talking in some weird baby language to me with half-formed words. I went along with it, keeping them happy.

"You two are gonna have younger cousins soon, and then you won't be the youngest anymore," I told them. Meaghan stared up at me with those piercing green eyes and smiled like she knew what I was saying. Tristan, unfortunately, inherited Adrian's attention span, and he just looked around the room constantly and pointed to everything.

Dimitri and the kids emerged moments later. Skylar wore a frilly pink one piece, Annika wore a matching purple one, and Aleksandr wore red swim trunks like his father.

The others came back moments later. I'd fastened hibiscus flowers in Annika's, Skylar's, Meaghan's and my hair, and I gave some to the rest of the girls.

"So, what's it gonna be? Beach? Outdoor pool? Indoor pool?" I asked everyone.

They all looked to each other, then, in unison, they replied, "Beach."

We all set out for the beach, the kids running ahead and giggling.

We stayed on the beach for a little while, but the Moroi were getting uncomfortable. So we went back inside to veg.

Everyone was gathered in our suite, so I figured that it was as good a time as any to tell everyone about my second pregnancy.

I stood, clearing my throat. "Guys, I have some news," I announced.

"What is it?" Mom asked.

"I'm gonna need Aleksandr's help," I said, waving him over. He ran to me, and I scooped him up.

"What, Momma?" he asked.

I whispered in his ear, and he squealed. "Go ahead, Alley Cat. Yell it!"

"MOMMA'S GONNA HAS A BABY!" he yelled.

I shook my head. "Not _a_ baby, Alek. _Two_ babies."

There was a chorus of "WHAT?" from the adults and cheers from the children.

"You're pregnant? With t_wins?_" Dad asked.

I giggled. "Surprise!"

"You're full of those lately, aren't you?" Adrian asked, amused.

I shrugged. "Guess I have an interesting life," I replied, leaning into Dimitri.

"Names!" Lissa exclaimed, grinning.

I groaned. "Dear God, not this again!"

"Oh, come on! This is exciting!"

I sighed. "Fine," I grumbled.

"I still like Jayce Adrik," Dimitri said.

Viktoria gasped. "Jayce Adrik? When did you come up with that, Dimka?" she asked.

"Back when we were coming up with names for the peanuts," he replied.

"What's the big deal?" Adrian asked.

"Adrik is the Russian equivalent of Adrian," I said, grinning.

"Oh. Well then. I feel special," he joked.

"You should."

"I like Isabelle," Mia said.

"Yes . . . Isabelle Christina," Dimitri added.

"What about Will?" Eddie suggested.

"And Larisa for a girl?" Christian added.

I clapped. "They're all perfect! If it's two boys, it'll be Jayce Adrik and William Edison, and if it's two girls, it'll be Isabelle Christina and Larisa Karolina," I said, grinning.

"And if it's a boy and a girl, I think Jayce Adrik and Isabelle Christina," Dimitri replied.

"They're all perfect!" Lissa squealed.

"I like the name Cheese, Momma," Annika said, giggling.

Mom picked her up and started tickling her. "Cheese is a name for food, not a person, silly girl," she told her, laughing.

I grinned. "I think Cheese is a lovely name, Mother."

"I agree with Rose," Dad said, chuckling.

"You would, Abe," Mom muttered.

Annika turned to look down at Julian. "I think I gonna call you Cheese now," she told him.

"Otay," he replied, smiling happily.

~VA~

Later on, we went to a luau that the hotel was hosting. The children stared in awe at all of the new sights.

When they announced that they were having a volunteer hula dancing competition, I, along with Lissa, Viktoria and Mia, volunteered immediately.

We changed into our hula attire and made our way onto the stage. I wore a green grass skirt, a coconut bra and seashell jewellery, and I had to admit that I looked pretty sexy.

The music started, and we all began swaying our hips to the island music. People were eliminated left and right, but the four of us made it until it was _only_ the four of us. The tempo of the music increased, and the battle raged on.

Lissa was the first of the four of us to be eliminated, but she took it good-naturedly.

Mia was the next to go, as she accidentally fell and twisted her ankle.

That left Viktoria and I, which wasn't good because we were so competitive.

In the end, it became too much, and I sank down, thoroughly exhausted. Viktoria was crowned the winner, and she helped me up off the floor of the stage and shook my hand.

"Nice try, sis," she said, smirking.

"There's always next time," I replied breezily, grinning.

She rolled her eyes and smiled, and we went to change back into our normal clothes.

~VA~

Later on, after Dimitri and I had put the triplets to bed, we went and sat on our balcony to gaze up at the stars.

"You did good earlier, Roza," he said genuinely, kissing my forehead.

I laughed. "Thanks, Dimi. I guess I can't beat your sister, though. She was pretty damn amazing at it."

He chuckled. "You'll always be a winner to me," he replied.

I rolled my eyes and pushed him playfully. "You are officially the sappiest person I've ever met."

"Yeah, but you wouldn't want it any other way."

"No, I wouldn't. Because I love you exactly the way you are."

I snuggled up to his chest and sighed happily. He kissed me softly, and my eyes slid closed, my lips curling into a smile.

We laid like that for what seemed like forever, and I found myself never wanting to get up. It was so perfect, just lying in his arms. It was where I wanted to be for all of eternity.

Whatever came at us, I know we'd be able to handle it together.

We'd make it through everything, as long as we were together.

He, Dimitri Belikov.

And I, Rose Hathaway-Belikova.

He and I, together forever.

**_Aww, that's the end! I'm actually crying right now because I'm so sad to see this end :( It's been such an amazing journey, writing this story..._**

**_I want to thank everyone who has ever left me a review on this story! You guys have all been so nice, and I couldn't have asked for better readers :')_**

**_Please review, one last time._**

**_I hope to post the sequel very soon. The title is, drumroll please..."What Happened to Forever?" Haha I bet that's got you all scared now :) I want you guys to review and try to guess what it's about!_**

**_Goodbye, guys. I've enjoyed every minute of writing this story, and I love all of you so much!_**

**_~ Sarah ~_**


	45. Final AN

_**Hey peeps!**_

_**Guess what?**_

_**I posted the prologue of "What Happened to Forever?"!**_

_**So check it out and tell me what you thought!**_

_**If I get good reviews, I'll post chapter one today!**_

_**Just thought I'd let you guys know :)**_

_**Oh, and if anyone likes the Fallen series by Lauren Kate and you've already read Passion, check out my oneshot!**_

_**Bye guys!**_


End file.
